Author's Note:

Reviews and Comments: To Tmrpotterhead250: Thank you for loving how I portray character dynamics. I love writing Harry and Ron's friendship and closeness. Their bromance is one of my favourite parts to write. Harry totally flirts with Theo and Theo is so lucky to have such great friends. Harry and Ron were exactly who he needed to go to for help. They were exactly what he needed. Ha, yes, they do need to turn the tables on Theo just to see what he does. Harry is a sweetheart and he was even more of one with Fleur. He was worried about her. Thank you very much! To Cassiopeia Anastasia Black: Harry, Ron, and Theo are cute together! Yes, what will happen with Zee? Thank you! To Zarathos Morgenstern: Thank you! It's nice to hear from you again. I have heard of stygian iron. We will have to see what happens next. Thank you! To minerdude: Sorry, it was one of the best mornings ever for Theo, and no, Zee is not back. I'm glad you enjoyed the moment with Harry, Ron, and Theo. Thank you! To darkhk: Yes, Bas is not going to be happy. Thank you! To scrappy8: Harry and Ron are not only Aurors who care, but friends who care. Theo was very lucky. Thank you! To Quill will 1981: Thank you very much! To Read and Fly: Theo is so inappropriate lol, but I do love him. You think Theo should tell Sebastian and then Sebastian just visit Macmillan? Interesting. As to killing Zee, Sirius, or Remus, I didn't make any promises this is true. We will have to see what happens. Thanks for loving the unexpected visit from Fleur and Harry being adorably worried about her. Thank you!

To Nightwing2013: Ernie is definitely a pompous sadist and yes, I think we all wish Finn had followed through with his threat. Ha, thanks for saying Harry's reaction to Theo's flirting is priceless, it really is. You're reluctant to see the light at the end of the tunnel? LOL. Well, it is coming… sort of. Thank you! To carleys123: You think they should sacrifice Bellatrix to save Zee? Interesting. Thank you! To Mrs HJSnape: I'm happy I could make you laugh. Yes, Harry will be seeking out the fae pretty soon and answers will be coming, they just might not be the ones we want. Thank you! To Chelsea Greenwell: Thank you! Yes, Harry and Ron are looking out for Theo. Thank you! To alix33: As you should be, Macmillan is very creepy. Thank you very much! To tim2604: Thanks for loving Harry, Ron, and Theo strengthening their bond. Ha, Ron is kind of right, they should offer and see what Theo does. Maybe it will happen in the future 😉. The fae will definitely have some things to say, but it might not be what they want to hear. It doesn't sound very Crouch like, but he definitely is up to something. Thank you for loving seeing Bill and Fleur again. Harry was so sweet with her. Thank you very much! To EllyAnn13: Theo didn't want to worry Sebastian but when he gets a letter and Sebastian isn't there, going to his Auror friends is definitely what he needs. Yes, Theo definitely uses flirting as a coping mechanism. McGonagall gave Harry a key in chapter 237 of ASC if that's what you're thinking of. Thank you very much. To charmshield7: Thanks for loving my banter with the boys. Yes, a solution to Zee is much needed. Thank you!

To AQuickRead91: I'm happy I made you smile so big with the Harry/Ron/Theo cuddle fest. Yes, Bas will not be happy when he finds out. Fleur is very smart which is why I had Harry talk to her instead of Bill. She doesn't get enough credit. Thank you! To marauders_mowopapr: Yes, the chapter was nice and fluffy minus the Macmillan bit. Theo getting support from two friends who've had their share of nightmares was important. Thank you! To briana_t: Thanks for loving the Harry/Ron/Theo scene. Yes, Bas will not be impressed when he learns of it. Thank you! To bandhoez9194: Ron and Harry are very sweet with Theo. I love showing how Theo has grown close to them when way back when Ginny first befriended him, Ron was downright rude, and Harry was a tad jealous. Harry and Ron definitely need to give it back to Theo, maybe they will in the future 😉. In front of their significant others or Draco and Blaise would be funny too. Yes, Fletcher's daughter did have a key in her necklace. Thank you very much! To Mrs_Norway: Happy to keep you chuckling with Theo's flirting, and yes, it definitely is a coping mechanism. Harry and Ron are there to help him. Hopefully the fae can help! Thank you! To MABK_Potter_Fan: Thank you! Macmillan is a creepy bloke so we can't forget about him completely. Thank you for saying that in my writing "characters find healthy ways to deal with their traumas as they are recovering from the war, it isn't easy, and every once in a while, those traumas keep popping up." Thank you! We'll touch upon that even more in this chapter. Thank you very much!

To vampireprincess141: I do love the relationship between Harry, Ron, and Theo as well. Laughter, sadness, happiness, and protectiveness is a great way to describe it. It's true, Macmillan doesn't deserve to get out at all. Thanks for loving my Fleur appearance and her giving some advice to help out Zee. Thank you! To katelyn453: Thank you! To SiriusLover93: Thank you! I do think shameless flirting is something Theo does naturally, but it does get stronger when he's using it as a coping mechanism, but only those who know him well, pick up on it. Fleur is so awesome. She is smart and deserves some credit. Interesting, you thought the two ladies were Polyjuiced as Crouch and Bella? Hmm. I love all of the plot bunnies. We will see what happens next! Thank you very much! To Vampyrella: Yes, the tension is building! You think there's going to be an even worse setback and we're going to lose Sirius and/or Zee? Interesting. Thank you! To Sets: Thanks for saying the "Harry/Ron/Theo dynamic is just as sweet as Pansy being a mama-bear last chapter, but not as unanticipated." LOL. As to Brambilla, well, there's only so much they can do. Thank you!

My posting schedule: Weekly.

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 TWENTY-FOUR:
The One With The Suspension

Hermione wasn't sure what it was about the day, but she was only halfway through it when she knew that she couldn't make it through. Her head was pounding. She felt clammy, shaky even, and she swore that the word carved into her flesh was aching.

"You all right?" Barnaby Lee asked, his eyebrows furrowed together in concern as he leaned over her.

Hermione shook her head. "I… no. I'm sorry, I think I have to go."

Barnaby frowned and jumped to his feet, taking her arm in his. "Anything I can do?"

"No… I'm sorry, Barnaby, I just…."

Barnaby nodded and waved her off. "I'll take care of it. Go get some rest, Hermione."

Hermione sent him a grateful look and grabbed her bag and cloak before she hurried towards the lifts. She couldn't quite put into words what it was that she was feeling, but her chest felt tight, constricting, and her arm was aching. It wasn't until she made it outside and across the street from the Ministry of Magic to St Paul's that she realized she was having a panic attack.

She sat on the bench and put her head between her knees, trying to catch her breath as she mentally told herself again and again that her scar didn't hurt; that she was okay; that it was all in her head… When she finally managed to calm herself, her hands were clammy and she pressed her fingers against her eyes.

She heard someone call her name but the last person she expected to see standing in front of her was Percy.

"Hermione, what on earth are you doing out here?" he demanded.

She shook her head and when she didn't answer she was pretty sure she heard him frown. Then he was sitting next to her and reaching for her hand.

"Shall I get Ronald for you?"

"No," she whispered, surprised that he would offer. "I'll be all right in a moment."

Percy squeezed her hand in his but didn't speak. She didn't know how long she sat like that but when she finally looked over at him, she felt better.

"Thank you."

Percy nodded. "You're welcome. I hardly did anything."

"No, you did."

Percy pursed his lips. "Panic attacks can happen with no rhyme or reason to them."

"It wasn't a panic attack."

"Denial isn't going to stop them."

"I'm not… you don't understand."

Percy's eyes darkened. "Look, maybe I'm not who you want to be talking to, but we both know you should be talking to someone. We've all seen our share of darkness in this war and you've seen more than others."

"I'm not ready," she whispered.

"And you'll never be ready if you keep putting it off," Percy lectured. "Ron deserves to have the woman he loves take care of herself. So do it already."

Then he stood up and marched off.

Hermione stared after him in bewilderment for a moment before she let out a shaky breath. She rubbed a hand over her arm again, knowing that the pain was in her head and thought about how wonderful Ron was when she had bad dreams, with her freakout over the not-pregnancy and with everything else. He was an incredible man and Percy was right, he did deserve someone who could take care of herself.

Fifteen minutes later she was walking up to a bright red townhouse in Brighton and knocking on the front door before she could talk herself out of it. Seamus opened it half a minute later in jeans and a light blue shirt rolled up to his elbows. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Hermione! Hallo."

"Hi, Seamus," Hermione said. "Sorry to drop by unexpectedly, but I… I rather need to talk to Dean."

Seamus' eyebrow lifted before he stepped back to let her inside. She entered into a narrow hall, leaving her shoes by the door before following Seamus into a tidy living room with a red leather sofa and back throw cushions.

"We're still settling in," he told her. "We're hoping that this summer we can invite everyone over for dinner, maybe a barbecue."

"It's lovely."

Seamus smiled and told her that he would be right back. It was only a moment or so before Dean stepped into the living room. His blue jeans were paint splattered, as was his white shirt and he was barefoot.

"Hi, Hermione," Dean greeted with a smile. "This is certainly a surprise. Where's Ron?"

"At work," she said quickly, pulling her cardigan off and rolling up the sleeve of her blouse. "I'm sorry to pop by unannounced, I know it's terrible rude of me, but… Dean, can you help me with this?"

Dean's eyes moved to her forearm and he waited. It took her a few seconds to realize that she was covering it with her hand. She took a slow breath before she carefully removed her hand and let Seamus and Dean's eyes land on the scar.

"Blimey," Seamus whispered, looking at the jagged edges of the horrible word cut into her skin.

"Seam, can you please get us some tea?" Dean asked, his eyes still on the scar on Hermione's arm.

Seamus looked like he wanted to protest, but he nodded and disappeared.

Hermione let out a shaky breath, her heart pounding in her chest again. She never willingly showed anyone her arm and she realized now that it was the first time Seamus and Dean had actually seen it. Knowing wasn't the same as seeing it with their own eyes.

Dean took a seat on the sofa and gestured for her to sit next to him. When she did, his hands hovered over her arm. "May I?"

When she nodded, he lifted her arm into his lap. He carefully traced the letters with his finger and she shivered.

"Thank you for being brave enough to show me this. It's not easy I can imagine."

A tear snuck down her cheek and she quickly wiped it away. "Can you help me hide it?"

Dean kept his dark fingers over her pale skin as he spoke. "Yes. Let's tall about what you want."

"I don't know," she whispered, shaking her head. "It was Ginny's idea for me to… I've never… I've never wanted a tattoo but this… it's so ugly, Dean, and I can still feel it even though I know it logically doesn't hurt anymore."

Dean nodded, his fingers gently tracing over the raised scar in a soothing motion as he spoke. "Well, we'll have to make it subtle and brilliant like you then, won't we?"

She let out a shaky laugh and Dean smiled.

"I have an idea or two. Let me grab my sketchbook."

An hour later, the tea was forgotten and Hermione was drinking red wine with the two of them while Dean painted her arm. She listened to Seamus talk about his job at the fire broomgade and all about Dean's portraits and art projects. She told them about how it had been her fault about the breakup and the pregnancy scare, and how amazing Ron had been.

"I still have nightmares about being trapped inside of Honeydukes," Dean admitted. "Each of us has something dark in our past that haunts us. Art makes it easy for me to deal with it. I… draw my feelings."

"And it helps?"

"Immensely," he replied.

"I talk to Dean," Seamus said. "The gents' night we do every month is cathartic to me in that sense too. I know it helps the others as well, but Harry and Theo see mind healers and that helps them more."

Hermione took a big gulp of her wine. "I'm afraid to talk to a mind healer."

"Why?" Dean asked.

"What if they tell me that every choice I've ever made was wrong? What if they tell me that I'm not good enough?"

Seamus walked over to top up her wine glass. "Well, first of all, that would make them a really shit mind healer. It's not their job to judge. It's their job to help."

"I know that logically, but talking about it with a stranger seems… well, strange. How could they know me enough to help me?"

"Well, a stranger is unbiased and they would be a professional who can help you come up with coping mechanisms for the things that bother you," Dean said.

"Or they'll tell me that I'm completely mental."

Seamus scoffed. "What if they tell you that you're a strong, brilliant woman who can do anything she puts her mind to including talking to a mind healer to help herself heal?"

"Done," Dean said, putting his brush down and saving Hermione from answering.

Hermione looked down at the arm that Dean had been painting and sketching on for the last two hours and her eyes widened in surprise. It was… beautiful. He'd used the jagged lines from the scar to merge them into books, stacking all six of them them up her arm in black and soft blues. The final book at the top had pages flipping open, scattering in the wind over the scar and each page had a word on it.

"Is that… a Princess Bride quote?"

Dean smiled. "You said it's your favourite book. I always loved the film myself."

She laughed as she read the words littered down on the pages: This is my favourite book in all the world though I have never read it.

Then he'd added vines around the books, linking through like the roots of the earth to cover the rest of the scar and tears rolled down Hermione's cheeks.

"Dean… it's beautiful."

He smiled. "Thank you. I kept the colours subdued so it's not so in your face, but the art is still there. What do you think? Is it something that you could live with?"

Hermione stared down at the paint on her arm and for the first time in over a year, she didn't see the scar and feel the pain of it. She didn't look at the scar and feel ugly. She didn't look at the scar and feel like a victim.

"It's perfect. Thank you."

Dean's smile widened. "Good. Let me just add the touches to the sketch. Harry's tattoo artist is a genius and if you take it to him, I know he can follow my design with no problem."

Seamus clinked his wine glass with hers. "It's very you, Hermione Granger."

She smiled and drank more wine and for the first time in longer than she could remember, she felt better. When Ron showed up a bit later, her eyes widened in surprise!

"RON!"

Ron lifted an eyebrow and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Oi. Why are you two getting my girlfriend drunk?"

"Not drunk, just buzzed," Seamus corrected. "Which is why I called you, she probably shouldn't Apparate."

"Hi, Ron," she exclaimed again, stumbling to her feet and snuggling into his embrace. She gripped his red Auror robe and grinned. "You're so sexy in your work attire."

Seamus cackled. "Ooof, we called Ron too soon. Maybe we can get some juicy Ron stories out of her."

Ron scooped Hermione up into his arms bridal style and Hermione squealed. "Ooh!"

"You two have done enough damage," Ron said as he accepted the sketch from Dean with a mumbled thanks. "Thanks for calling me and thanks for taking care of her."

"Any time," Dean said.

Hermione snuggled into Ron's arms as he grabbed her shoes by the door and then carried her outside and around the block to a place he could Disapparate. They headed up the path to Clevedon Court and Harry lifted an eyebrow when they stepped into the house.

"What happened?"

"Harry! Hi, Harry!"

Harry grinned at Hermione's excitement. "And what have you been doing?"

"Drinking," Hermione said, cheerfully. "Harry, can we go get a tattoo?

"Sure," Harry said.

Ron rolled his eyes. "Seamus got her drunk."

"Seamus?"

Ron shook his head. "And Dean. I have no idea."

He left Harry downstairs and walked Hermione up to the bedroom suite that they'd lived in before and still used when they crashed with Harry.

He gently placed her on the bed, but she clung to him until he sat down next to her.

"You all right?"

"No," she whispered, snuggling into his arms. "But I will be."

Ron kissed her forehead, holding her close. "Percy came to see me at work, said you were having a moment."

"I freaked out," she admitted. "I don't really know why. It just… consumed me; like a panic attack or something and my arm hurt and I told Barnaby that I had to leave and…" She pushed up the sleeve of her shirt. "I think I want this."

Ron looked down at the beautiful art on her arm and smiled. "It's very you. I love it."

"I kind of do too," she admitted.

Ron pressed his lips to her forehead again. "What can I do to help, Hermione? I hate seeing you like this. You've been better since we talked things out, but you're still not handling things like you usually do. I'm not trying to start a fight so don't give me that look. I'm just worried about you."

Hermione exhaled slowly before she tightened her hands in Ron's shirt. "I think I need to talk to someone, Ron."

"I think you do, too," he admitted.

Hermione rested her head on his shoulder. "Tomorrow. I'll find someone tomorrow."

Ron kissed her forehead again and tightened his arms around her. "I love you and I'm proud of you."

"Tell me again tomorrow after I make an appointment. I might be too scared to go through with it."

He smiled. "I can do that. I'll tell you every bloody day."

"Don't swear."

Ron chuckled. "There's my girl."

Hermione smiled, but didn't move from his arms.

Ron lifted her painted arm to admire the lines. "This is really very beautiful. Dean's incredibly talented."

"It was Ginny's idea," Hermione murmured. "She mentioned it about a month ago, but I wasn't sure… I'm not a tattoo person."

Ron's lips curved. "A tattoo person? And who do you think qualifies as a tattoo person?"

"I don't know," she admitted. "It just seemed like something I wouldn't do."

Ron gave her a half smile. "Well, as gorgeous as this art is, you don't have to do it. You're beautiful, Hermione, even with this scar."

Tears welled up in her eyes. "But it's hideous, Ron. Every time I look down at it, I see her. The anger in her eyes, the hatred. I can't bear it."

"And the tattoo will make it better?"

Hermione looked down at the art that Dean had painted on her and nodded. "Yes."

Ron pressed his forehead against hers. "Then do it."

Hermione snuggled into his chest. "Do you think that Harry will go with me?"

"Without question," Ron said. "So will I."

Hermione couldn't help but smile against her boyfriend's chest. "I love you very much, Ron Weasley."

"Yeah? Well, that's lucky because I love you, too."

Then he held her close as they snuggled in the bed, both of them drifting off to sleep, wrapped in each other's arms.

~ TTTC ~

Harry was more than happy to spend his day off taking Hermione to see Matteo Morretti in Knockturn Alley. He'd sent Matteo a letter the day before explaining that his friend wanted to come in and hide a hideous scar and Matteo was more than happy to help out.

When they arrived at the tattoo parlour, Matteo greeted Harry with a wide smile. "Harry! We've missed you around here. Any chance that I can tempt you to get a new tat?"

Harry grinned. "Not today. Today it's about Hermione."

Matteo took in Hermione's nervous pose in the doorway and gave her a bright smile. "Come in. Any friend of Harry's is a friend of mine."

Hermione tentatively stepped inside and handed him the drawing in her hand. "A friend of mine designed this."

Matteo looked down at the art and whistled. "Gorgeous work. This the same bloke who did yours, Harry?"

"Yeah," Harry said. "He's a talented artist."

"He is," Matteo said. "All right, love. Have a seat right here."

Hermione squeezed Ron's hand in hers before she took a quick breath and moved to sit in the chair that Matteo offered. Ron crossed his arms in front of his chest and gave his girlfriend a reassuring smile.

"You're sure that this is what you want, Hermione?"

Hermione looked down at her arm for a long moment before she nodded. "Yes. It's what I need."

Harry reached over to touch her shoulder while Ron held her hand and they watched Matteo work. Other than a small hiss of pain, Hermione didn't make a sound as Matteo used his wand to ink in the artwork that Dean had designed. The tattoo was entirely in black and greys with only a hint of blue and red on the pages of the books to hide some of the more drastic cuts from the scar. When he finished, Hermione looked down at it with a big smile on her face.

"It looks good."

Ron leaned in to kiss his girlfriend's forehead. "You're beautiful."

Hermione blushed and when she stood up, engulfed herself in Ron's arms. Harry went to pay Matteo, much to Hermione's dismay (but he wouldn't take no for answer), and thanked him for his work. When they left, he glanced over at where his friends were holding hands.

"Well, what's next on the agenda?"

Hermione bit her bottom lip before she snuck a glance over at Harry. "Next is being brave enough to make an appointment with a mind healer."

"Anyone in mind?" Harry asked.

Hermione shook her head. "I don't know."

"I really like McCraight," Harry offered. "He's kind and he… gets me."

"My Auror assigned mind healer was good as well," Ron added. "But to be honest, I liked Na'eemah Hickey much more. She had a way about her. You'd like her."

Hermione looked hesitant and Harry nodded.

"Listen to Ron, Hermione. Ginny and Theo love Hickey as well. She might be great for you."

"I don't know if I'm ready," she admitted.

Ron brought their joined hands to his lips. "You're ready. Come on. Na'eemah's working out of St Mungo's now. We'll go together and see about getting you an appointment."

Harry watched them head off and hoped that Ron's support was enough to give Hermione the push to get the help she needed.

He glanced down at his watch and saw that it was only half past ten in the morning. Not having any others plans for the day, Harry decided to pop by Apricity Lane and see how Neville was doing on their renovations.

He Apparated to Manchester and disappeared under the skirts of the Queen Victoria statue to enter the magical village. He shoved his hands in his pockets as he headed down the lane, keeping his eyes peeled ahead for the old bank that had become Sophistication by Pansy. He could see the renovations happening on the other side of the building and he slid around the back to slip inside.

Harry found Goyle near the back wearing jeans, a white vest covered in sweat, and a tool belt as he hammered something into place along one wall while he used his wand to work another piece. He caught sight of Neville off to the other side doing the same thing and he grinned, making his way over to his friend.

"Hey, Nev."

"Harry!" Neville exclaimed, lowering his wand and turning to give him a one-armed hug. "What are you doing here?"

"Day off. It looks like it's coming along."

"It really is," Neville said, a huge smile on his face. "Greg's been a brilliant help. Come on, I'll give you the tour."

Harry followed Neville as he showed him the work they'd done before from ripping up the floors to a fresh coat of paint to taking down and removing walls. Neville explained how the shop was going to have a main front show room with blooms on one side and sweets on the other.

"We'll share the front desk," he explained. "But I think two registers to keep the two separate will make it easier. This side here is all going to be a glass display for the fresh baked goods every day and over the top here will be menu boards of products and prices. Over on my side will be the same with flower and plant prices and this wall I'm going to turn into a living wall where I can store some of the bouquets and keep them fresh."

He led him through the back and to the vaults, explaining how they were going to use them as greenhouses.

"I have my own personal greenhouses at home where I will continue to do a lot of my own work, but I can transport things back and forth which will be helpful. I want to be able to make my own plants and flowers as well when I can. I've already created a few combinations as you know and I want to offer them."

Harry nodded, remembering how Neville liked to work crossbreeding plants and flowers to create his own. He'd combined a morning glory with a delphinium which he named Blue Hannah after his girlfriend and Harry knew he'd done others since then. He could hear the excitement in his voice as he followed him out of the vaults and over to the kitchen area where Goyle was helping pull out the floor.

"Greg says that the whole floor needs to come up. It's rotted through so we're taking it all up, fixing the base beneath, and putting fresh flooring down. The marble out front we can keep, but the wood back here is too far gone to save. We have the cupboards and whatnot picked out for the kitchen and we're just finalizing the plan for the kitchen layout. Hannah's with a designer today doing that."

"It looks great," Harry said. "Seriously, this is all coming together much faster than I expected."

"Yeah," Neville agreed. "It wouldn't be without Greg's help. If we keep at this speed, I think that we might be able to open by September or October."

"Wow."

Neville nodded. "Yeah, it's going to be great."

"Neville," Goyle said, coming up behind them. "That bloke who I told you about with the doors says that he can see us now."

"Great," Neville said. "Greg's going to help us find the perfect door for the shop. It was him who found the turquoise door for Sophistication by Pansy and Hannah and I want something similar — unique."

Goyle shrugged. "It adds character."

Neville grinned. "That it does. All right, just let me find my wallet."

As Neville hurried off to try to find his wallet, Harry turned to Goyle. "It's great of you to help them out with all of this."

Goyle shrugged again. "I've got time."

"No, it's more than that. You like the work."

"Sure."

"You do good work, Goyle. Neville's lucky to have you. This is a big project and as brilliant as he is, he's definitely more at home with his plants than the rest."

"He knows what he wants," Goyle said. "He's… nice."

"Yeah, he is," Harry said. "And forgiving. I can see you've changed and frankly if Neville can talk highly of someone who picked on him in the early years of school, I'm not one to hold a grudge. I know what you did during the war."

Goyle shifted on his feet. "I… you saved the world, Potter. If it wasn't for prats like me, you wouldn't have had to."

Harry extended his hand, making the big man's eyes widen. "I don't see any prats around here. I see a man who stood his ground when he was given a choice between right and wrong. Someone who isn't afraid to admit to his mistakes. That to me says courage, mate. I think Neville's lucky to call you a friend."

Goyle stared at Harry for a moment before he reached out to accept Harry's hand, clasping his big hand around Harry's. "I've never really had those before. Friends."

Harry gave him a half-smile. "A few more pub nights with us and you'll have more than you want, Goyle."

Goyle's eyes were full of surprise before he nodded and let go of Harry's hand. "Call me, Greg."

He nodded. "Only if you call me Harry."

Greg smiled. "I can do that."

Neville came hurrying back with his wallet in his hand. "Found it! Do you want to come along, Harry? You can help us find something."

Harry shook his head. "Nah. I have a few more things to do today. You two have fun. I can't wait to see what you come up with."

He followed them out as Neville spoke animately about finding a perfect door for their shop and listened as Greg gave out some suggestions with a smile. If you would have asked him five years ago if he'd ever imagined Neville and Goyle becoming friends, Harry would have called it mad, but now… it worked.

He smiled as he watched them head out and thought having Greg come around to pub night again would be great. They could use the fresh blood and he rather thought Greg could use a few more friends as well.

Harry headed out of Apricity Lane and found himself Apparating to the village of Hogsmeade. He made his way up the bridge towards the castle without a clear thought in his head and after a reluctant Filch bade him enter, he made his way to Remus' classroom. He could hear his father's clear voice through the open door and it brought a smile to his face.

"Ghosts are interesting creatures because every single ghost we see floating around Hogwarts was once a human being. They once lived and breathed and had full lives just like you and me. Does anyone know how ghosts are made? Mr Timber?"

"It's when you die and you don't want to go," a voice squeaked, making Harry wince in sympathy at the sound of puberty.

"Correct. Five points to Hufflepuff," Remus said as Harry came to stand in the doorway. "Anyone can become a ghost upon death, even Muggles; though witches and wizards often to be stronger ghosts than those of the non-magical class. Harry, why is that?"

Harry leaned against the doorjamb, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "A professor once told me that it's because the magic in our blood gives our soul more power which means that witches and wizards can live for centuries as ghosts with very little problems while Muggles who become ghosts will often go mad within a few decades."

"Correct," Remus said. "For those of you who don't know, this is my son, Harry."

All eyes were on him and Harry gave them a little wave of what he thought were third years. "Sorry to interrupt, Uncle Moony."

"Moony?" A girl exclaimed. "Does he call you that because you're a werewolf?"

"It's an old nickname my friends once gave me, but yes," Remus said as the charm went off signalling the end of class. "Read the chapters on ghosts, spirits, and spirit possession before the next class. There might be a pop quiz."

A few people groaned as they grabbed their things and headed out of the classroom. Some of the kids stared up at Harry in awe as they walked by. One girl with short blonde hair tilted her head back to look up at him with wide eyes.

"You're tall."

Harry stifled a surprise laugh. "Erm, I am."

"Not as tall as Professor Lupin."

"Well, I don't know too many people who are," Harry said. "Other than Professor Hagrid."

The girl nodded. "You have nice eyes, too. Thanks for saving the world and all that."

"Oh, um, you're welcome," Harry said, his cheeks flushing.

"My name's Juniper and you're totally peng."

Harry's cheeks flushed darker. "Erm, nice to meet you, Juniper."

"Is it true that your dating Ginny Weasley?"

"Yes."

"She's brilliant. She plays for the Holyhead Harpies and is so beautiful."

Harry nodded. "She does and yeah, she is."

"And she still goes to school here," Juniper continued, staring up at Harry. "She autographed my Transfiguration textbook for me and my sister was jealous. You two make an adorable couple."

"Um, thanks."

Juniper smiled, her eyes on his. "Can I have your autograph too?"

"Erm, sure," Harry said, surprised when she immediately passed him her Transfiguration textbook. He opened the front and saw Ginny's signature and it made him smile. He signed his own and handed it back to her.

"Wicked!" she exclaimed. "Thanks! All right, bye."

Harry shook his head as she hurried out of the classroom, not really sure what had just happened. He headed over to where Teddy was standing in his play pen, arms outstretched for him.

"Hi, Teddy," Harry said, reaching down to scoop the boy up into his arms and kiss his cheek. "I've missed you."

"Hee!" Teddy exclaimed, clasping Harry's cheeks in his little hands.

"He's missed you, too," Remus said, reaching out to stroke his son's cheek before doing the same to Harry. "You all right?"

"Well, that conversation with Juniper was kind of weird."

Remus chuckled. "She's very… blunt. When Teddy came to work with me for the first time she walked right up to my desk and told me that my son was adorable and that she guessed it made me kind of sexy for an old bloke. Am I old?"

"You've been old for ages," Harry teased. "Just look at all of that silver."

"Shush," Remus said. "Nymphadora's been on me about my hair lately. The last year has been… stressful."

"You can say that again," Harry said, putting Teddy down when he squirmed so that he could play. "I'm surprised that I don't have any greys coming in."

Remus put his hand on Harry's shoulder, turning him for a hug. "How are you doing? Really?"

Harry sighed into Remus' arms. "I don't know. I'm… dealing."

Remus framed Harry's face in his hands. "McCraight?"

"Still going three times a week," Harry said. "He's up to date on all of my cases and on everything going on. It's… it's a good thing, talking to him."

"I'm glad," Remus replied. "Talking to someone is important, Harry. I love seeing you open up and finally get some help."

"Was I so mental before?" he teased.

"Completely mad," Remus said, his lips twitching. "And it worried me."

Harry leaned into Remus again for another hug. "I'm all right. Really."

Remus kept his arms wrapped around Harry. "Having Sirius back is a blessing, but I know it stresses me out just as much."

"It does?" Harry asked, stepping back to look at Remus in surprise.

"Of course it does," Remus admitted. "He's come back from the dead and he's alive and whole and it's wonderful. It's more than I ever imagined was possible. It's incredible to watch him interact with Mina and Leo, to tell him about Teddy, and to just have my brother and best mate back to share in our pride over our firstborn."

Harry's cheeks heated at that. "I love having him back. It feels… right, you know? But also like… like it's too good to be true. When we go and see Zee it all comes full circle. He's back because she's in a coma and I just don't know what to do about that."

Remus squeezed Harry's shoulder. "You'll figure it out. No matter what happens, I know that you will have done your best, Harry. No one can ask for anything more than that."

"What if my best isn't enough?"

"Harry, your best is your best and if it's not enough it's because it wasn't meant to be, not because you didn't try."

He nodded, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Remus gestured towards Teddy. "Grab your godson. We'll have lunch down in the kitchens and you can tell me what brings you here."

Ten minutes later they were sitting in the Hogwarts kitchen. Teddy was charmed into a seat next to them and the house elves supplied them with towering bacon sandwiches and sliced fresh vegetables on the side. Harry took a long drink of the ice cold pumpkin juice, digging into his sandwich with gusto as he told Remus about he, Ron, and Hermione having gone to see the tattoo artist in Knockturn Alley.

"Oh? Did you get another tattoo?" he asked.

Harry shook his head. "No, Hermione did." He filled him on how Hermione had gotten a tattoo over her scar. "It was Ginny's idea and something finally snapped in Hermione and she went to get it done. I don't know what clicked, but she was planning on finding a mind healer to speak with as well."

"Good," Remus said. "I'm proud of her for that. She's been through an extraordinary amount herself and could do to talk to someone about it all. How's Ron dealing?"

"He's fine," Harry replied. "Ron handles things well. He just… takes them in stride, I suppose? When he needs to talk about something, he just talks. To me. His brothers. His mum. Ginny. Hermione. A mind healer. I envy him the simplicity of it."

"Some people don't find it difficult to open up, to admit their feelings and worries and fears."

"I don't find it difficult to open up," Harry said carefully. "It's just different."

"And there's nothing wrong with that as long as you're dealing with things in your own way. I'm happy that McCraight is helping so much. Have you spoken to Ginny lately?"

"Yeah, we try to talk on the mirror every day. That helps too. She's worried about Theo."

Harry filled him on what happened with Theo and how he'd gone to the Department of Corrections to make sure that it was taken care of. When he told him about Theo's nightmare and how he and Ron couldn't wake him, Remus lifted an eyebrow.

"He's been through a lot."

"I've never seen anyone have a nightmare like that," Harry admitted. "We couldn't wake him and when we did, it was like he wasn't seeing us; like he was still trapped in wherever his nightmare was."

Remus nodded. "He'll get over those over time. He'll still have nightmares of course, as everyone does, but the deep ones that leave him struggling to wake… the more he heals and speaks to a mind healer, the better those will get. You used to have nightmares like that."

"I did?" Harry asked, his eyes widening in surprise as he reached for another bacon sandwich. "I don't remember that."

"It was when you first came to us. You were scared of touch and you craved it so much at the same time. Sirius and I didn't know how to approach you because our first instinct was to pick you up and snuggle you into our arms, but you were afraid and cautious. We had to wait for you to come to us which was harder. One of the worst ones that I remember was after the first time Sirius had taken you to Grimmauld Place. You'd found the Locket of Slytherin and you'd had a reaction to it. You only settled once Sirius and I snuggled you between us in the bed and Sirius sang to you."

Harry smiled at that. "I always slept better when one of you were close by after I had a bad dream. I liked sleeping with you more than Uncle Siri because you were always so warm."

Remus chuckled. "Yes, I've always run rather hot. Teddy's the same."

"Yeah, I've noticed that. It's like he has a permanent heating charm," Harry said. "But it wasn't just the physical warmth, it was… having Ginny in bed with me helps too. She grounds me. She makes me feel warm and safe and… loved."

"You are loved, Harry. Very loved," Remus said.

"I know," Harry replied. "Uncle Rem… Uncle Sirius gave me the Potter ring."

Remus' lips curved. "Did he now?"

"You don't seem surprised."

"Should I be?"

Harry shrugged. "I know my parents married young and that it was because of the war, mostly. My dad wanted to protect my mum because she was Muggleborn and he believed that making her a Potter would give her the protection of his name, his blood, and his body."

"It did," Remus said. "It did give her that protection and I don't even think Lily fully realized how much it protected her."

"Ginny and I… we don't need to marry for that reason."

"James and Lily would have married regardless, Harry. They were too in love not to."

"No, I know that," Harry said quickly. "I just mean, Ginny and I don't have to rush."

"Of course not," Remus replied. "There's nothing to rush. She's still moving in with you in June, is she not?"

"Yeah," Harry said, his cheeks heating. "I can't wait. I hate that we're apart, but I get it; I just miss her so much. I just want her to be living with me. To be in my bed, in my arms."

Remus chuckled. "Hmm, yes, you've two certainly have been making up for lost time in that regard."

Harry blushed. "That's not the point."

"Oh? You don't want to have lots of sex?" Remus teased.

"Well, I never said that," Harry mumbled, making Remus laugh. "I know that I want to spend the rest of my life with her. There's no question in there and I know we're moving in together and I know that there's no rush to make it more than than but… I've been thinking about it and when Uncle Siri gave me the ring it…"

Remus smiled. "You're absolutely right, Harry. There's no rush. You and Ginny have been together a long time."

"Almost four years," Harry said.

"Yes, however, you're both still young as well."

"So were my parents."

Remus nodded. "Yes, they were and they became engaged after only a year of dating. Everyone's timeline is different. Harry, are you saying that you want to propose Ginny?"

"Yes," Harry said, his cheeks heating. "Yes, I want that."

Remus' smile widened. "Well, that's good then."

Harry helped himself to a third bacon sandwich. "It is good, but also, I can't ask her now. Not with everything… I have to figure out things with Zee first and we still have to find Crouch and Lestrange. It's not safe with them out there, not knowing what they're planning or doing… and I don't want to take away from Ginny's studies either and… it's a lot. I have to figure out how to ask her just right too."

"Don't be naked," Remus said.

Harry laughed. "Why not? It worked out for you."

Remus smirked. "Brat. Don't be naked. The proposal idea will come to you. And as to the rest, if anyone can handle it, you can. However, you also know that you can always come to me for help."

"I know," Harry said.

"Good," Remus replied. "Now eat your vegetables. I only have ten more minutes before my next class starts."

Harry laughed. "And you're ordering me to eat my vegetables? I'm not five anymore, Uncle Moony."

"No, you're not," Remus said, wiping Teddy's face and hands with a warm face cloth. "But I happen to know that there's treacle tart over there and unless you eat your vegetables, the house elves won't be bringing you a slice."

Harry shook his head in amusement as he bit into a carrot stick. "Yes, Dad."

Remus grinned and stood up, kissing Harry on the top of his head. "Behave. Hold your godson while I run to the loo."

Harry watched his father run off and as Teddy shifted in his arms, he held out the carrot stick. "Want a carrot, Teddy Bear?"

Teddy wrinkled his nose in disgust and Harry crunched into the carrot.

"You and me both, mate."

~ TTTC ~

Sebastian was tired when he came home in the early morning light a few days later. He still had a mountain of paperwork to deal with and a debriefing with Auror M in two hours, but first he wanted to see his man. He wanted to let him know that he was back in the country.

The latest mission had taken his team to Slovakia and it had turned into over three weeks. The investigation had taken a lot and it had been almost a week since he'd even managed to mirror-call Theo to let him know what was going on. He knew that Theo understood that his work sometimes meant he wasn't available, but he still felt guilty when he was forced to go incommunicado.

He left his shoes by the door and made his way upstairs to the bedroom. The sound of singing made him smile as he entered the master bedroom suite. He made his way up the step to the bath and heard the shower running as Theo belted out a popular Muggle pop song. He was grinning as he quickly undressed while Theo sang loudly and off key in a rather adorable fashion along with the wireless playing.

"Baby, when the lights go out! Every single world could not express, the love and tenderness. I'll show you what it's all about. Babe, I swear you will succumb to me; so baby come to me, when the lights go out!"

Sebastian opened the glass door as the music from the wireless got louder. He took a moment to appreciate the lean form of his man shaking his pert arse and he licked his lips. Then he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Theo from behind.

Theo squealed and jumped. Sebastian spun him around, pinning him against the wall with a smile.

"Fuck! You scared me half to death, Sebastian Christopher Kane!" Theo exclaimed, placing a hand over his heart.

"Sorry to startle you, baby," Sebastian said, a smile tugging at his lips at the fact that Theo had full named him. "I was admiring your dance moves."

Theo threw his arms around Sebastian's neck as Sebastian put his knee between Theo's legs. "They are pretty great. Hi, I've missed you."

"Missed you more," Sebastian said, leaning in and bending down to capture Theo's lips in a long kiss.

Theo beamed at him, shampoo dripping down his ears. "I like this surprise."

"Mmm, me too," Sebastian said, letting his eyes roam down his boyfriend's body. He took a moment to admire the pale skin, the few scattered freckles, the tight lean muscles. He ran a hand down his spine, another over his flat stomach before he took Theo's cock in his hand. "Merlin, you're beautiful."

Theo blushed. "Keep talking like that and you're going to get lucky."

Sebastian stroked him in his hand as he nibbled at his lips. "Oh, someone's definitely getting lucky." He let go of Theo's cock and reached out to flick the dildo that charmed to the tile wall on their left. "I want to see my beautiful man come."

Theo blushed, his eyes moving to the toy. "I think you love that thing more than me."

"There's nothing I love more than you."

Theo's eyes softened. "I meant that you love watching me use it more than I love to use it."

Sebastian pressed a kiss to his collarbone, then his shoulder. "You can always say no."

"No," Theo said quickly, shaking his head. "I never said that I don't want to fuck myself on it for you. I love it when you watch me. In fact, I really only like to use it when you watch me. You've unlocked a voyeur kink in me that I didn't know I had."

Sebastian chuckled as he pumped some lubricant into his hand and worked it onto the dildo. "I don't know why this turns me on so much, baby. I've never wanted to see this with anyone else, but you… bloody hell, you're so sexy."

Theo smiled and moved to stand with his back against the wall, positioning himself over the toy. He reached back to use his hand to guide it in and it didn't take long at all for him to be pushing back on it, wantonly. Sebastian reached down automatically to stroke his own erection, his eyes never leaving Theo's before he knelt before him and leaned in to drag his tongue across his shaft.

"So beautiful and all mine."

Theo reached down to grip Sebastian's wet hair under the spray. "I'm yours, Bas. I'm yours."

Sebastian leaned in and took him down his throat and Theo moaned. He kept his hands on his boyfriend's lean hips as Theo pushed back on the toy and then shagged Sebastian's mouth. He reached down to stroke himself while he worked Theo's cock and when Theo stiffened and cried out, shooting down his throat, he came in his own hand, groaning. When they finished, Sebastian stood up and kissed Theo deeply.

"I love you," Theo whispered against his lips.

They finished their shower as Sebastian filled him on his trip. He told him the basics about how it had been successful, unable to share the details entirely, and told him about how Durant had wiped out one night because he'd been checking out a woman. Missed a step and slid down a big staircase.

"Is he all right?"

"Oh, his ego is bruised as much as his arse, but he'll survive," Sebastian teased. "How have you been?"

"Good," Theo said. "Harry and Ron let me feel up their abs and Ron let me hold his arse."

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "Did they now?"

Theo nodded. "They did. Does it make you jealous?"

He chuckled. "A little bit."

Theo trailed his fingers over the grooves of Sebastian's abdomen. "Don't worry, I told them how many abs you had and they were very jealous. Harry's super fit, but even he has only six. Besides," Theo said, reaching down to grip Sebastian's cock. "You're the only one I want."

"Good. Keep it that way," he teased. "How are your classes going?"

"Classes have been keeping me pretty busy."

Sebastian kissed his forehead. "Are you still loving them?"

"So much," Theo admitted. "Do you have to go into work today?"

"Yes," Sebastian told him. "I took some time to catch you this morning and to let you know that I'm home, but I have some paperwork to do and a debriefing to sit through. I'll be home before dinner. Promise."

"Good," Theo said, wrapping his arms around Sebastian's waist and tilting his head back to look up at him. "We can catch up and then snog some more."

"Deal," Sebastian said, stealing another kiss. He ran his thumb under Theo's eyes. "You been sleeping okay, baby? More nightmares?"

Theo shrugged. "Same old." He wiggled out of his boyfriend's grasp. "I have to get to class."

They dressed and headed down to the kitchen to get some breakfast. They made scrambled eggs and toast together before Theo kissed him quickly and hurried off. Sebastian finished his own breakfast, wondering what kind of nightmares were keeping Theo from sleeping well. He knew that something was bothering him and the dark circles under his eyes definitely looked more pronounced than they'd been before he'd left for Slovakia.

He sighed and decided that he would do his best to make sure Theo received a good night's sleep tonight and then grabbed his things to head to the Magical Intelligence Agency.

Sebastian spent thirty minutes working on his reports before he met Yeona and Durant in the debriefing room with Auror M. They'd been assigned for almost three weeks on this mission that had taken them deep into Slovakia to work with a team of Aurors there about a Potion smuggling ring. The Potions being smuggled were dangerous and the recruiters had somehow gotten children involved in the actual smuggling; carrying them in their backpacks. There had been fifteen Potion related deaths before the MIA had been called in. They'd lost another three before they were able to solve the case. It had taken longer than they planned to put everything together and close the case, but they had closed it and three men had been arrested for the smuggling and one witch for manslaughter.

By the time Auror M finished the debriefing, he was starving. He nudged Durant as they headed out.

"Have time to grab lunch? I'm famished."

Durant nodded and they headed out to take the lifts down. When the doors opened at the atrium, Sebastian was surprised to see Harry standing there.

"Harry, hi," he said.

Harry smiled. "Hi, Sebastian. Where are you lot heading?"

"Food," Durant answered. "This one's starving."

"Want to join us, Harry?" Sebastian offered.

"Can't," Harry said. "I have a meeting with McCraight in ten. Oh, since I have you here. Don't worry about the guard, all right? Ron and I took care of it. I got Robards on it."

Sebastian lifted an eyebrow. "What guard?"

"The Azkaban one," Harry said, running his fingers through his hair. "He's been suspended for two weeks without pay impending an investigation, but I'm pretty sure that he's going to get fired no matter what the outcome. It's only been a few days obviously and the guard claimed he didn't know the proper protocol, but Macmillan's been put on a tighter lockdown. He won't be sending out any more letters."

"Letters?" Sebastian asked, the word coming out a bit harsher than he meant it. "What letters?"

Harry's eyes widened at the look of confusion on Sebastian's face. "Oh, fuck. You didn't know, did you?"

"Know what?"

"Bloody hell. Look, I'm sorry. Forget I said anything."

"Can't do that," Sebastian said, a million thoughts rushing through his head. "What about Macmillan?"

Harry let out a slow breath. "Theo said that he was going to tell you."

"Then I'm sure he will, but why don't you tell me since we're here," Sebastian demanded, his voice coming out like ice.

"Look, Macmillan sent him a letter and it upset him. You were gone and… he came to hang out with Ron and I; spent the night. He had… well, one hell of a nightmare. We couldn't wake him," Harry said and a chill rushed over Sebastian as he remembered how pale and tired his man had looked. "Once he finally woke up, he looked panicked like he was trapped in his own head or something. The three of us slept on the sofa together after and he said that he was fine when morning came."

Sebastian frowned. "They can be bad, his nightmares. What exactly was in this letter? It must have triggered it."

Harry's eyes darkened. "Nothing good. You should talk to Theo. Just know that Ron and I handled it, all right? He won't be reaching out again. It's been taken care of."

Sebastian nodded as Harry hurried off.

"I'm sure he's fine," Durant said, squeezing his friend's shoulder.

"I know he is," Sebastian said. "I saw him this morning and he was. He looked tired, but the fact that he went to see Harry tells me that he wasn't all right, D."

"Talk to him," Durant said. "I'm sure that he has a reason why he didn't tell you."

Sebastian planned on it, but first he needed to make sure that everything was exactly as Harry had said. It wasn't that he didn't trust Harry, but he was still only an A1 and it was Theo. He needed to make sure that he was going to be safe.

Durant tagged along with him to the Ministry of Magic to talk to the Department of Corrections. Nolan Winters told him the same thing that Harry had told him. He went over the investigation into the guards himself before he insisted on going to the crypt to check on Macmillan personally.

He found him sitting in his prison cell, a book in his hand. Macmillan looked up when the sliding hatch opened and he stood up.

"Bit early for dinner, isn't it?"

"I'm not here to bring you dinner," Sebastian growled. "I'm here to inform you that a new restraining order has been made against you from Theodore Nott."

"What for? I'm already in prison."

"You've sent him harassing letters and that's going to stop."

Macmillan shrugged. "I had things to say."

"Nothing you have to say is worth reading. The guard who were helping you is now under investigation and your parole has been pushed back an additional five years which means that you will serve ten more years before you can even petition for parole."

Macmillan's eyes narrowed. "You're the boyfriend, aren't you? That bloke who was with him at my hearing."

"The letters will stop," Sebastian repeated. "You will make no more attempts at reaching out to Theodore Nott. Am I clear?"

Macmillan shrugged, moving closer to the door. "I have rights and if I want to write to him and tell him how I feel, that's my right."

"Not anymore," Sebastian growled. "You gave up those rights when you were incarcerated here."

Macmillan stared at him for a moment before he licked his lips. "It's my right to have my thoughts. Your boyfriend's mouth is pure magic. I dream about his mouth wrapped around my cock. The way he swallows me down like I'm the greatest thing he's ever had — the fuck, mate?"

Sebastian's hand had shot through the open food hatch and grabbed Macmillan by the scruff of his shirt. "Shut your gob, you dungbeatle! I'm not your bloody mate. I work for the bloody MIA and I can promise you that if you ever try to contact him again, you will spend the rest of your miserable life locked up inside of a cell."

"Are you threatening me?"

"No," Sebastian said. "I'm stating a fact."

Sebastian let go of his shirt and turned away, clenching his fists at his side. He started to close the hatch back up when Macmillan's face appeared right at it.

"Bet it kills you that I had him first, doesn't it?"

"Shut your mouth, you gobshite!" Sebastian growled, his voice full of warning.

Macmillan smirked. "Bet it kills you that he swallowed me down over and over again. I could have had him anyway I wanted, you know? He loved getting on his knees for me. He was greedy for it. I just wish that I hadn't held back because I bet bending him over and taking him up the arse would have been absolute nirvana. I would have made him bleed and he'd beg me for more. You should have seen how he licked his own blood off of my —"

Sebastian's hand reached through the hatch so quickly that Macmillan didn't have time to blink. He fisted his hand into Macmillan's hair and slammed his face forward into the iron door.

"Fuck! You broke my bloody nose!" Macmillan screamed, trying to get loose from Sebastian's grip.

Sebastian yanked him forward again and Macmillan ripped his hair out of Sebastian's fist and stood up, but Sebastian's free fist then slammed into his ribs: Once, twice, three times. Macmillan screamed and went down, but before he fell, Sebastian struck out again, his fist slamming right into Macmillan's balls.

"K!" Durant exclaimed, grabbing Sebastian and pulling him back before he could strike out again. "He's down!"

"Did you see what he did to me?" Macmillan cried out, doubled over on the floor of his cell. His nose was clearly broken with blood running down his chin and he was holding his hands over his crotch.

"Looked like you walked into the door to me, didn't it, K?"

Sebastian attempted to level his breathing and Durant's arm held him tightly back against Durant's chest.

"Breathe," Durant whispered. "I know that you want to pound him into the ground, but you have to step back, K."

"He broke my bloody nose!" Macmillan hollered.

Durant's eyes narrowed as he stared at the prisoner. "You're lucky. If it was my fist, I would have broken more than your nose, you slimy piece of shit."

Then Durant slammed the hatch closed and steered Sebastian away from the cell just as two guards came running.

"He's going to need the infirmary," Durant told them. "Ran right into the door."

No one stopped them as they left the prison and Sebastian didn't say a word until they arrived back at the Magical Intelligence Agency.

"You all right?"

Sebastian didn't know how to answer that. He'd never wanted to hurt someone so much before in his life. He sat at his desk and buried his face in his hands. Durant rubbed a hand over his back.

"Mate, that prisoner is a steaming pile of shit buried under rubbish. He's not worth it."

"I can't let him hurt Theo again. I can't," Sebastian whispered.

"Auror K!" MacGregor bellowed, making them both jump. "My office. Now! Auror D, you too."

When Sebastian closed the door behind him, MacGregor's eyes narrowed.

"K, you've had a stellar reputation here in the last four years. You've moved up the ranks with ease. You close cases. You bring me results and despite your sometimes rough demeanour, you've never once beaten a prisoner."

Sebastian trained his eyes on his superior. "I understand that I was out of line, Sir."

"Out of line?" MacGregor bellowed. "You bruised his ribs and broke his nose. Not to mention punched him in the bollocks!"

"Git deserved it," Durant muttered.

"I don't care if he bloody deserved it," MacGregor exclaimed, holding his fingers over the bridge of his nose. "I know Macmillan's history and I'm aware that he assaulted your boyfriend, Auror K, but he is in prison. He is the responsibility of the prison guards and we do not go around physically assaulting prisoners. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Sir."

MacGregor stared at him for a moment. "This mission in Slovakia was a long one. Maybe you're tired. Maybe you're overworked. I don't care."

"He provoked him," Durant said.

"Auror D, he's a prisoner who sexually and violently assaulted another man. When that man's boyfriend shows up, of course he bloody provoked him! It's up to you, two grown men might I add, to be professional in this kind of situation."

"I won't apologize, Sir," Sebastian said, his eyes meeting MacGregor's. "I'm aware that it was unprofessional. I…"

MacGregor pursed his lips. "There won't be charges. However, you're suspended for three weeks without pay."

"Sir!" Durant exclaimed. "If I may —"

"No, you may not," MacGregor interrupted, holding up a hand to silence Durant. "Three weeks without pay, Auror K, and this will go on record. Auror D, you should have interceded. You will also be getting a citation against your name. The MIA stands for something important and I will not have my Aurors — my personally handpicked bloody knights — going off like vigilantes and dealing out their own brand of justice. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Sir," they both said.

MacGregor nodded. "Auror K, pass your notes off to Auror D about the Slovakia mission. Auror D, you will file the rest of the paperwork along with Auror J. Auror K, you're dismissed. Three weeks."

"Yes, Sir," they both repeated.

When they returned to their office, Durant squeezed Sebastian's shoulder. "This blows."

"No," Sebastian said, staring down at his bloody knuckles. "He's right. I fucked up. I let that bloody tosser get under my skin when I should have walked away."

"He provoked you," Durant argued.

"He did," Sebastian admitted. "But I let him. Fuck, D, I went in there ready for a fight and you know it. I wanted to make him hurt like he hurt Theo and… that's not me. I'm not that bloke."

Durant squeezed his shoulder again. "We all have weaknesses, Bas. Go on. Go home and talk to your man."

"I'm sorry that I got you caught up in this," Sebastian said.

"Don't be," Durant said. "I'm only sorry that I didn't jump in and snap that fucker's cock clean off."

Sebastian snorted. "Yeah, that wouldn't have helped the situation."

Durant laughed. "Probably not. Go home, Bas. Take the three weeks and spend it with your man. I'm sure Auror M will have cooled off by then."

"We can hope," Sebastian muttered, heading to the restroom to clean up his cut and bleeding knuckles.

Sebastian passed off his notes to Durant and then grabbed his things before he was led out of the Secret Intelligence Unit by security, which somehow made the suspension that much more real. When he stepped into Norfolk Manor, he was still wondering why Theo hadn't said a word about any of this to him. Not just this morning, but according to Winters, these letters had been coming for months and Theo hadn't said a single word to him about them; not one.

Sebastian tucked his shoes away, trying to fight down the anger he was feeling all over again before he headed to find his man. He found him sitting at the desk in the library, books and bits of parchment spread out around him. Armani was grooming himself on the sofa. Arlo was spread out across some of Theo's notes and Oliver was sitting in Theo's lap while Theo's fingers stroked behind his ears. When Armani caught sight of him, he meowed and walked towards him.

"Hi, love," Sebastian said, crouching down to greet the kitten.

When he looked up, Theo was pouting. "I never get love from Armani."

"Hey, two out of three. Can't all be winners."

Theo scoffed and Sebastian stood up.

"I ran into Harry this afternoon."

"Yeah? And what's up with my favourite lover?"

"I'm your only bloody lover," Sebastian growled, making Theo's lips twitch.

"Of course, Auror Arsehole, but Harry is my fantasy lover."

"You're lucky I know he has zero interest in you."

"Aww jealous?"

"Yes."

Theo smiled and carefully moved Oliver so that he could stand. "Is it weird that I love that?"

"Yes. I mean, no, I mean… bloody hell, Theo. He told me that he handled things in the Azkaban Crypt."

Theo's eyes widened as he froze in place. "Oh."

Sebastian crossed his arms in front of his chest, his eyes on Theo's pale face. "Why didn't you tell me, Theo?"

"You just came back early this morning," Theo began. "I didn't want to spoil your welcome home with unimportant news. I was going to tell you tonight."

"And what about the other four letters that you've been getting for months and didn't tell me about?"

"Bas…"

Sebastian shook his head. "No. Don't do that. Don't give me those eyes. I've seen your fucking nightmares, Theo! I know that arsehat still lives in your head rent free. I know those memories still haunt you. Why the fuck would you not tell someone about those letters sooner? Why wouldn't you tell me?"

"I… I didn't want to worry you," he whispered.

"Too bloody late for that!"

Theo winced at his tone. "Sebastian, I… I just wanted to handle it myself, all right? I-I didn't want to be a coward. I thought maybe if I ignored them, they would stop. And they were so far and few in-between I thought maybe they did."

"Do you not trust me to protect you?" Sebastian demanded, his fury rising.

"What? Of course I do!" Theo exclaimed. "Of course I trust you!"

Sebastian's hands clenched at his sides. He wanted to grab his man and shake some sense into him. He wanted to punch Macmillan all over again. He wanted to pummel Prince Finley Alexander for not letting Theo heal properly and most of all, he wanted to punish himself for not seeing that Theo had been hiding something from him.

"No, you don't. If you trusted me, you wouldn't have kept this from me."

He spun around on his heel before he said something that he was going to regret. He needed to get some air; to think. To breathe. He'd barely stepped out of the library before Theo's hand grabbed his.

"Sebastian! Please, don't go off upset!"

"I am bloody upset!" Sebastian shouted, spinning around and making Theo jump at his outburst. "If I had known that this was happening we could have stopped it months ago! We could have stopped him from writing to you!"

"I'm sorry!" Theo exclaimed, his brown eyes wide. "I shouldn't have kept it to myself. I'm sorry."

Sebastian emitted an angry sigh. "Being bloody sorry doesn't negate the fact that you didn't trust me enough to tell me. If we're going to be partners, Theo, we have to share each other's burdens as much as our joys. I just… I can't look at you right now."

He made to turn again, but Theo jumped towards him. Sebastian's hands caught him automatically when he jumped, lifting him up as his boyfriend wrapped his legs around his waist and then his arms around his neck.

"Theo…"

Theo tightened his arms around Sebastian's neck. "No. You can't march off because you're upset. We're not done. I'm sorry that I hid this from you. It's not that I don't trust you, Bas, the problem is that I… I trust you too much," he whispered.

"Get down," Sebastian hissed, trying to shuffle Theo back to the floor. "I don't want to fight with you right now."

"No," Theo said, tightening his legs around Sebastian's waist to keep him in place. "I want to fight. I don't want this to come between us."

Sebastian made to put Theo down again, but Theo held on, refusing to let go. "Theo…"

"I love you," Theo blurted, making Sebastian's eyes meet his. "I love you more than I can put into words. I love you so much it bloody scares me. There's never… I've never had anyone love me back quite like you, Sebastian. You listen to me when I talk and you don't care that I overshare all of our sexual exploits with all of our friends."

"No, you ignore me and overshare it all anyway," Sebastian interrupted.

"And you treat me like an equal partner in this relationship," Theo continued. "This last year has been the best year of my whole life, Sebastian. I've never had a family to love me, not that I can remember anyway. I've never had someone to give my heart to; to take care of before you. I thought I'd found that but… it was different. You trust me to make my own choices; to make my own mistakes. You gave me a family."

"Theo…"

Theo placed a finger over Sebastian's lips. "Please let me finish. You trust me to make my own mistakes and after everything that I went through with Macmillan and being saved by Finn and losing Finn and everything coming back and… it's a lot. I know it's a lot and I'm a bloody mess and you still want me for some unknown reason and when that first letter came… fuck, I wanted to run right to you. I wanted you to hold me and tell me everything would be all right and then make if go away like I knew you would! But then I thought that's not fair on you either. I can't just let you fix everything. I had to do it myself and I thought maybe if I just ignored it, he'd stop sending me letters. And he did stop for almost two months, but then another arrived and I just threw it away without even thinking. I just tossed it into the fire and watched it burn and months went by again with nothing. Then this one came and… I don't know, Bas, it just hit me differently. I couldn't bring myself to burn it and I had the mirror in my hand to call you and I stopped myself because you were somewhere in Eastern Europe doing something top secret and important and I couldn't have you worried about me when you were over there. The last thing I want is for you to be distracted and get hurt because I was feeling sad and scared and upset."

Sebastian leaned in to rest his forehead against Theo's. "Please don't keep me in the dark, baby. Of course we can have secrets from each other, but not ones like this. Not ones that are so important to our well being."

"I'm sorry that I couldn't handle it myself," he whispered.

"Theo, I don't expect you to handle everything yourself. Partners, remember? That's what being boyfriends means. We lean on each other."

"I know. I just… if I hadn't ignored it for so long maybe I wouldn't have freaked out like I did… Harry and Ron took care of it the way that I know you would have."

"They're good men. I love that they love you. I love that you have other people in your life to love you and take care of you, but fuck I want it to be me. And I know how bloody selfish that sounds, but I want it anyway. I love you and I've never once thought of you as cowardly. I love taking care of you because you've always taken care of yourself. I want to give you the world and I don't know how to do that when I'm in love with one of the richest men in the country."

Theo's lips curved. "I'm basically your sugar daddy."

"Piss off. You are not."

Theo pressed his lips to his. "I know that I should have told you right away. You're right. We can have secrets, but not lies. I respect you too much for that. You've become the most important person in my life, Sebastian, and I won't do anything to ruin that."

Sebastian sighed and kissed his forehead. "I'm sorry that I got shirty and cross."

Theo shook his head. "I'm not. I think this was our first big fight."

"More or less," Sebastian said. "Is that a good thing?"

Theo grinned, leaning in to suck on the side of his boyfriend's neck. "You tell me. I think making up means we get to have makeup sex now."

Sebastian chuckled, his hands sliding from his hips to cup Theo's perfect bottom and licked his lips. "You know, you might be onto something."

Theo laughed when Sebastian marched across the room to sit him on the desk. "Are we all right, Bas?"

Sebastian pressed his lips to Theo's forehead. "I love you. I don't want anything like this to happen again."

"Me neither," Theo replied. "It won't. I promise not to keep secrets like this from you ever again."

"Don't hide the bad from me," Sebastian said. "I want the bad and the good. I want all of it, baby. I want you."

"I want all of it too," Theo said. "I promise. No more secrets."

"All right," Sebastian agreed. "Well, in light of the no secrets thing, I have to admit to something. I went to see Macmillan today after I spoke with Harry."

Theo's fingers tightened on Sebastian's shirt. "You did? Why?"

"Because I was bloody angry," Sebastian admitted. "Just the thought of him wanting to hurt you, threatening you, scaring you… part of me wanted to beat him bloody with my fists."

"Did you?" he whispered.

Sebastian bit his lip, holding out his cut up knuckles to his boyfriend. "He… fuck. I let him provoke me, Theo. I let him get under my skin and yes, I broke his bloody nose, bruised some ribs, and punched him right in the bollocks."

"Bas…"

"And you know what? I don't regret it. I should. He's a prisoner and it wasn't a fair fight, but fuck, when he hurt you it wasn't exactly a fair fight either."

Theo swallowed, his fingers trembling. "What did he say?"

"He was running his mouth, trying to get under my skin as I said. I was only going to confront him, but… he set me off and I… reacted. I know that I didn't have any right to go there and confront him, but I just… I needed to do something, Theo. I needed to protect you."

Theo softened his grip on Sebastian's shirt. "You always do. I'm sorry that I put you in that position. It won't happen again. I promise. No more secrets." He took Sebastian's hand and gently kissed his injured knuckles. "My burdens are yours."

"Thank you, baby," he said as Theo gently kissed his knuckles a second time. "Theo, I um… I have one more thing to confess." When Theo tilted his head and waited, he sighed. "I've been suspended for three weeks without pay."

"WHAT?" Theo exclaimed, his eyes widening.

"It was unprofessional of me. I assaulted Macmillan. It was justified defence in my mind based on what he did to you, but… it wasn't justified."

"Bas," Theo whispered. "I can't believe you got… this is all my fault!"

"No," Sebastian said quickly, cupping his chin. "This is on me and no one else. I made the choice to go there and speak with him. I let him get under my skin. This is my responsibility and I'll take the punishment that I'm dealt."

"Three weeks…"

Sebastian brushed his lips over Theo's. "Think of it this way, that's three weeks of me being here doing nothing but waiting to ravage you the very moment you come home."

Theo's slow smile made desire curl in Sebastian's gut. "Will you wait for me naked and wrapped with a bow?"

He chuckled. "We'll see."

"Guess, I really will be your sugar daddy."

Sebastian rolled his eyes. "You're a brat. Now, let's get back to this concept of makeup sex you were talking about."

Theo grinned. "Yes, it's very important. It establishes that we had our fight and we've forgiven each other so we have to make each other come now as payment."

"Oh, is that how that works?" Sebastian teased.

"Yup," Theo said, running his finger over Sebastian's bottom lip. "Blow me."

Sebastian's eyes darkened in lust, but he slowly sank to his knees, his fingers moving to pop open the button on Theo's trousers. "With pleasure."

Then he had his mouth wrapped around him as Theo ran his fingers through his hair. Sebastian's tongue trailed over him, sucking and swallowing greedily as Theo gasped above him. He pulled his mouth off to nuzzle his balls.

"Only me."

"Yes," Theo moaned as Sebastian took him back into his throat. "Only you."

When he came, Sebastian clutched his thighs and swallowed him down. Then he lifted him off of the desk and carried him over the soft rug in the middle of the library and covered his body with his as they kissed. Theo's hand slid into Sebastian's trousers, eager to get a feel for him, and then he pushed his Auror onto his back and shimmied down to use his mouth in return.

When he finished, they were both half naked on the floor of the library and Theo snuggled closer into Sebastian's arms. He tapped his fingers along his boyfriend's abs.

"So, if I start another fight with you about how you never pick up your wet towels, can we have sex again?"

Sebastian huffed. "I do so pick up my bloody towels."

"You don't. You always leave them in a puddle on the bathroom floor like a heathen."

"You always distract me when I'm getting dressed and I forget about it. When you're not around, I remember just fine."

"Liar. I can't be held responsible for what I do when you're naked. Have you seen you?"

"I pick up my own bloody towels," Sebastian growled.

"Okay, we fought again," Theo said with a grin. "Can we have more makeup sex now?"

Sebastian barked out a laugh as Theo rolled on top of him, pulling his shirt over his head. Sebastian let his hands glide up the newly exposed skin as he stared up at where his boyfriend was straddling him, his cock hard.

"Can we eat first?"

Theo pouted. "Is the fire already gone from our relationship? You're choosing food over coming a second time? You're supposed to succumb to my wiles."

Sebastian sat up, locking Theo more securely over him and making their cocks brush together. "All right. Let's make a deal. Whatever we find for food, I'll eat it off of your body."

Theo scrambled to his feet so fast he stumbled, making Sebastian laugh. "Last one to the kitchen has to come last!"

Sebastian slowed his walk behind Theo and grinned. If he had to wait, so would Theo, and he couldn't wait to draw his man's pleasure out again and again; to drive him mad with lust for him.

No, he definitely planned on taking his time.


End Author's Notes:

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the lyrics to the song "When the Lights Go Out" by the British pop band Five.

PS — Hope you enjoyed this calm chapter, because the next one kicks off some intensity.

Thank you and please review!