Usual disclaimers apply. I make no profit, just doing it for lawls. Please don't sue me.

Trigger warnings- mentions of past SA, underage drinking, mentions of violence, general adult themes, language.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the 40th chapter!

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As soon as I stepped into the mouth of the cave and came into the light of the small fire, I felt my disguise melt away. The fading olive color of my skin back to its original alabaster white confirmed it. Looking at my hands was the safest bet, allowing the image of everyone else to move in my periphery.

It was easier to interact with the world wearing someone else's face, wearing my own made it much harder to engage with reality. Not to mention how difficult it was standing in my own body. I had to look away from the lace and leather covering my seemingly paler-than-ever skin. The foreign fabrics no longer felt like battle armor, but a Halloween costume.

But when the startled gasp broke the deafening silence in the cave I looked up to see sterling silver eyes slicing through my unease. The look of wonder inside of them rooted me to the spot, my lips falling open in a gasp of my own.

Silently, I thanked Neviah. The dress did its job.

Sirius was speechless, motionless, and staring.

Mind you, I was not much better but for the opposite reason. He looked horrible. Truly terrible and understandably so. Over a decade in imprisonment, having your soul slowly sucked away and then living hidden in a cave for years after would do that to anyone.

Yet, somehow, by some magic Sirius possessed, he did not look ugly. I was not repulsed, I was saddened, but attracted nonetheless. He was not the vision from my dreams, but he could be. He would be, I knew and so I could see him that way in my mind's eye.

But it wasn't until Remus nudged his oldest friend in the side, making a delightful blush color the sallow skin of Sirius' cheeks did I truly feel the spark. He was the man from my visions, the lover that spoke in my mind. The one who used his velvet voice to seduce, comfort, and encourage but never to judge, chastise, or berate. The voice that sets my skin on fire in memory of some of the filthiest things I've ever heard, much less could dream up on my own.

My reaction seemed to move Sirius into action more than anything else. With a blink and no other preparation, a devastating grin lit Sirius' face as he stepped toward me slowly. "Andrella, it is truly my pleasure to formally meet you. Sirius Black, at your service."

He extended a hand and when I accepted, he shocked me into another gasp by taking my hand and kissing the back of it. The moment his lips touched my skin, my mind supplied flashing images of us entwined together, naked and writhing in every position of the kama sutra. I didn't even know what that meant but I was seeing it in action.

His gray eyes were nearly all black as he glanced up to watch my reaction as he took the time to kiss each knuckle. The slight twitch of his lips as he did so told me he was seeing the same things and he knew the effect it was having on me. I was struggling to hold back a moan at the feeling of his hot breath on my skin.

Soon. His voice growled in my mind.

The moan escaped without me even hearing it, much less being able to hold it back. But Snape clearly heard it. And it was enough for him to clear his throat loudly in reprimand.

I squeaked with embarrassment as I remembered we had an audience. I tried to pull my hand back but Sirius simply laughed against my skin, placing one last kiss before releasing me. He gave me a dazzling smile that made him look a decade younger.

"I suppose you weren't lying after all, Moony. I apologize." Sirius addressed Remus instead of the surly potions professor.

"The only one you should apologize to is Andrella for that rather inappropriate display." Remus said blandly.

"I'm pretty sure that delicious sound was a clear sign of her approval, isn't that right, love?" Sirius sassed, tossing a simple wink to me that had no right turning my knees to unset custard. His charms were much more powerful in person. I was truly beginning to fear I was a goner.

"Enough!" Snape shouted, commanding silence before he went on. "The Weasley twins have warned us that Fenrir Greyback is in the village searching for Andrella as we speak. He could smell her. The Weasley twins are covering her scent now."

Sirius blanched at this, all traces of humor leaving his face as he turned to address Severus. "Where will she be safest?"

"One of her safe houses. For now. Do you still have access to your family home?" Snape asked, to the point but without his usual bite. Interesting.

"Yes, but I'm sure it's not in the best of conditions. I haven't been there in over two decades." Sirius answered honestly.

"That's even better then." Snape nodded, tapping a finger to his chin for a few minutes in deep thought. Nobody dared break the silence as his mind worked.

"Andrella and Sirius will get out of here now, return to where she's been staying. Then Remus and I will work on Dumbledore in pleading your cases of innocence and necessity. We'll convince him that if you two are allowed to live in 12 Grimmauld Place, you can stay out of the way and turn it into a potential safe house for the Order."

"The Order is still operational?" Sirius asked.

Snape nodded. "In a skeleton form, mostly just Dumbledore and myself as far as I am aware. There hasn't been much to discuss in years."

"But something has changed?" Remus deduced, wit as sharp as I remembered.

"Yes." Snape said, struggling with himself for a moment before he lifted the left sleeve of his robe. "The mark is returning and not just mine."

I gasped at the sight of it, only having seen it in Snape's memory. As I looked at it I felt the phantom pain of receiving it. I rubbed my own arm and was thankful for the lace. It was a textural reassurance of the difference between the memory and now.

Snape quickly tugged his sleeve down; it's job done. He crossed his arms and waited for someone to speak.

"He's really back, then?" Sirius sighed, looking very much the victim of his circumstances as he sagged with the weight of this truth.

"He has returned without a body, but he will soon regain it. Along with his full power." I shocked everyone by answering. I doubled down now that all eyes were on me. "Once the third task is won."

I expected them to doubt me, to question how I could possibly know that. It was more concerning when they didn't say anything. All three of them stared at me with horrified expressions. I was beginning to get weirded out.

Then, I remembered.

They all read my mother's journal. They knew what I am, what I can do, what I can know.

Sirius broke the silence first, turning back to Snape, "Will she be safe if I go with her?"

"Yes." Snape said, dissatisfied with the arrangements. "And in turn you will be safe. Remus and I will contact you when it is time for you to return so we can start setting up 12 Grimmauld Place so you both have a permanent place to live and Andrella can get her qualifications."

"What?" I asked, grumpy at the idea of not being done with school.

"No niece of mine is going to be limited by a lack of education." Snape snapped back, using my own joke against me. For that, I could not fault him or argue back. Credit where it's due.

"Fine. Whatever." I huffed but let it drop, not caring that I looked like a pouting toddler.

It didn't last long as the need for reassurance that he could contact me if something went wrong was too strong to stay silent out of spite.

"Leave a piece of paper on your nightstand. Leave it blank or write on it. I'll summon it to me every night and return it if it's blank. Or write a reply if it isn't. That's how we'll keep in touch."

Snape nodded his approval.

"I'm sorry but did you say niece?" Remus interjected.

"It was our cover story for meeting." I explained with a wave of my hands. Irritated with the whole situation on the surface, secretly dying with mortification of the reality I was faced with. The flashes of fantasies rumbling around my mind.

I couldn't stand to look Sirius in the eye, how was I supposed to live with him?

"It will work well as a cover story in the future as well if we need one." Snape explained, already moving on to more pressing matters of business. He turned directly to me and asked, "Are you able and willing to stay with Sirius in the safe house you have been staying in?"

It was a straightforward enough question but I knew Severus better than that. I understood the real question and why he was asking it.

"Yes." I answered, not trusting myself to look at Sirius right now. "Dobby has been coming to cook me meals. As it is, he cooks enough for seven people every meal. My cooler is stocked with leftovers for weeks."

"Dobby has been called to you?" Snape asked, his tone too serious for the question.

"I didn't call him. He just showed up the first time I went into the kitchen." I offered with a shrug, not sure why that answer seemed to displease him so much.

It clearly did, seeing as his entire face fell. It was even worse than the expression he had before he asked if I had feelings for him. I was about to ask him what the hell was wrong with him when I noticed the one thing I thought I'd never see in person—something that shocked me into silence.

Snape's eyes were downcast, his lips drawn tight, and ever so slowly a single tear ran its course down his cheek.

I looked to Sirius and Remus for help but quickly realized I would find none there. They both looked absolutely gobsmacked at the sight, clearly never seeing such a display from Severus Snape in all the years they had known him.

I felt compelled to console him but I didn't have the first idea where to start. I looked back to Severus, trying to figure out where all this came from. I was about to beg him to tell me what was wrong so I could help when I heard his shaky inhale. When he looked up, I could see it in the endless black abyss of his eyes.

He knew.

Now it was my breathing that was shaky as I struggled to catch it. Several things happened at once after that.

Snape apologized to me. Saying the words, "I'm sorry" one after the other for the first time in decades, I'm sure. He said it with such emotion, such understanding that I couldn't stand it.

And then he said it again.

"I'm so sorry, Andrella."

And then I couldn't breathe at all anymore. The air in the cave was smokey and thick and inaccessible to me. I felt my eyes go wide at the realization, my hands and legs started to shake in panic.

And then I heard it, his voice, right in my ear, saying out loud to me, "In and out, nice and slow. Just breathe, Andrella."

And then I could breathe again.

"That's right, just like that." Sirius encouraged, as he turned my chin to look at me.

I was glad my embarrassment of another shaky gasp at the contact was excused by the panic attack. It was this embarrassment that made me stubbornly keep my eyes downcast.

How could I look into his eyes when I could barely keep myself from vibrating out of existence at his mere proximity?

Look at me, love. Sirius' voice purred inside mymind and I knew I couldn't hide the gasp this time.

Shocked, I looked up at him. Green meeting grey.

In that instant, I knew all I needed to know while knowing absolutely nothing.

Nothing made sense, least of all how right it felt to be comforted by the touch of a stranger. The bond we shared, it transcended my comprehension. I knew I belonged with him, that we belonged to each other but we've said less than a dozen words to each other in reality.

But in the space of my mind that only Sirius could claim? We had already shared everything—heart, body, soul, and spirit. And yet…we hadn't. It was all too confusing.

The change happened in an instance, too quick for anyone to catch. Not even me. I was floating in the impossible bliss of being reunited with a lover I never truly met, sinking deep into the pools of liquid silver of their eyes. I was warm and safe and seen.

The next second, the next breath and I was nothing but confused. My vision flashed green before it faded fast through a grayscale that ended in an all encompassing black. I blinked slowly, sluggish, unsure of what was happening. I was sure it was just a prank.

I knew it wasn't when I heard my name being called by three panicked voices before they too slipped away. I felt my legs give out in slow motion, the swoosh of air as I began to fall. I felt hands grip me tightly, pulling me into a too bony grip. I knew it was Sirius even without that indication. His scent. It was unmistakable to me—fire whiskey, smoke, and motor oil.

I welcomed my unconsciousness like an old friend.

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His scent was the first thing that registered once I came to.

Yes, it was dampened by the scent of dirt and grime and general body odor, but it didn't matter. It was all there underneath–firewhiskey, smoke, and motor oil. Sirius.

Shhh, Maledetto. I heard Romona whisper reassuringly, Stay still and listen. You'll want to hear this next bit and if they know you'll awake they won't speak freely.

Immediately intrigued, I worked to keep my appearance of sleep while allowing the world to filter in. First, I noticed I was laying down on a soft mattress and that my head was resting on a rather warm pillow. When it shifted and separated for just a moment before rejoining, I realized my pillow was actually Sirius' lap.

I felt his fingers carding through my hair rhythmically as he hummed a gentle tune. It took me a moment before realizing it was the song we sang together while Neviah disguised me as Romona. I felt my stomach flutter but worked to remain still and steady. I allowed myself to enjoy the moment that my entire world was just this, just us two together like this before the rest of reality began to leak in.

"—don't see why we're even considering this. Surely you agree that it's inappropriate!" Remus' tone was one of some of someone on using their last breath of exasperation, "She's barely seventeen! She's still a child, Severus."

"I was not aware we were on a first name basis again, Lupin." Snape snapped back, sarcasm heavy as he over pronounced Remus' surname. "And while you might technically be right and I am not arguing the moral truth, the objective reality is Andrella's luxury of enjoying her childhood has been stolen from her."

"But he's twice her age! She's only two years older than his godson!" Remus argued on, making rather valid points.

I ignored how nostalgic it struck of a conversation I had with the twins over pints of butterbeers. It was only a few months ago, but it felt like several lifetimes removed.

"You are looking at her as your student, as someone in your charge you have to protect. I understand and while noble it's rather naive." Snape pressed on. "You have read Emmaleena's journal. No matter what version was presented to you, you know their history. You know the ways this story can end. You know this is one of the happier endings, for them both."

"You know we can hear you, right?" Sirius asked, still half humming. His entire body shaked with the vibration of it now that he raised his voice. I was thankful again to be feigning sleep when I caught onto the fact Sirius definitely said we.

That's right, love. You and me. That's how it's going to be from now on. Sirius' chuckle rumbled in my head, equal parts soothing and possessive. I couldn't help the involuntary shiver the sound of it elicited, finally breaking my cover of sleep.

I decided I might as well make a show of waking up. Following through on the sudden opportunity to get Sirius back for his interruption of my eavesdropping, I flipped myself around. Feigning innocence, I nuzzled my head into his lap. Well aware of the rubbing motion of my cheek against him through the thin fabric of his pants. I hummed as I teased him, pretending to snuggle back into my pillow for a return to sleep. I felt Sirius hiss out loud as his hand stilled in my hair. I decided he had paid enough.

Almost.

I snapped my eyes open to flash him a devilish grin. I soaked up the image of his face as he lost his composure for just a second, giving me the momentary advantage. I didn't give him a chance to recover.

I stared straight into his eyes as I conjured images of what I would do to him if we were alone in this cave. I felt myself blush at the image of me licking around the head of his prick before tracing down the vein to the base. I knew he saw it by how his eyes continuously widened, how his Adam's apple bobbed.

Once I was sure my skin was flushed enough to play the part and most importantly, my mind was still coherent enough to pull it off I pulled back. Faking a startled gasp, I pushed myself away from Sirius. I looked to meet Remus' expression of mirrored mortification, thankful I landed on him first. It gave me the resolve I needed not to let the act slip when I glanced at Severus. His face was set in stone, expressionless except for the raised eyebrow. The look that meant he was unimpressed with me.

I ignored it as Sirius began to laugh out loud. When I looked at him, he shook his head at me and pointed a finger in my direction. "Oh, you'd have been a wicked good Maurader with acting skills like that."

"I find myself unable to disagree. I might have said it was a rather cunning plan befitting of my house." Snape said in distaste. I knew it meant he was about to go full on lecture mode and sure enough …"but a Gryffindor prankster you might be. A Slytherin would know better than to go playing mind games without putting their shield ups, allowing anyone to see."

My mortification was not only made genuine, but amplified. My blush was fire across my face and neck as I stared at the floor. I was unable to look Snape in the eye, knowing he saw the projected images, too. Sirius was no better, laughing louder than ever as he also realized the implications.

"What is going on here?" Remus finally demanded. Thankfully it seemed he was spared the details of my self posed mortification.

"Rest assured that whatever relationship they have or might form is undoubtedly…consensual." Snape drew out the most tasteful explanation he could. It did nothing to ease my embarrassment.

By Merlin's mercy, this seemed to be enough explanation for him. The subject was officially dropped for the moment and I intended to make sure it stayed that way by speaking first.

"How long was I out for?"

Remus glanced at this watch before answering, "Almost three hours now. It's quarter past seven."

I leveled a grin at Severus, "Too bad you couldn't make it to the twins dentition. I think it would have set a record for them."

"It wouldn't have, not quite yet. We're six shy from 400." George's voice responded. I whipped my head around so fast neck muscles pulled, but I turned in time to catch Fred's addition.

"And yes, we're counting this one as our 394th."

They stood, grinning at the mouth of the cave holding their brooms loftily. With them wafted the overwhelming scent of apples, freshly mowed grass, and chimney smoke. The closest version of George's scent I could convince them to make as the trademark scent of the DungBomb BeGone spray we invented last summer.

In the moments it took me to register their appearance, they walked further into the cave. Into the light of the fire, where I could see how ruffled their appearances actually was. They weren't just windswept from flying, but dirty and sweaty, and as I squinted, I noticed the stain on Fred's collar.

"Freddie…" I said absently, rushing forward in panic, forgetting that Fred hated me right now.

His unease as my approach softened as he registered my genuine concern, my fear for him. "I'm okay. I'm not hurt."

"Then what?" I reached forward, running my hand over the dried blood. Looking into those blue eyes, so familiar and yet lost to me for so long, I felt a piece of myself breaking and I retreated a step.

"It isn't his." George answered, his tone laced with cruel amusement. I looked at him to find a grin as cold, as sharp. Taking in the state of his overgrown hair until I saw the darker specks of red littered sporadically.

I turned to Fred for explanation, no longer able to look at George. Fred's eyes were sad as he explained in a hollow voice. "Greyback got away, but right after George took out the two men he left behind. He was only traveling with two members of his pack."

Murdered. George murdered two men. We're both murderers now.

But Fred wasn't finished. He continued on, words picking up with passion as he was filled with the need to defend his twin's actions. "They were talking about what they were going to do to you once they hunted you down. They had orders from Malfoy to kill you on sight and somehow what they wanted to do was…worse."

George's voice filled my ears, more threatening than I've ever heard it. He provided the unedited truth, Fred tried to delicately gloss over. "They were racing for their position in the queue for you once they got you back to their den. I could not let that happen."

Not again. George's voice in my head was faint, soft and only heard by me. I felt the weight of the admission of the full extent of his knowledge, of his acceptance of the truth.

Morbid instinct turned my body to look at him without my consent. I wasn't ready to see him. I wasn't ready to see his twisted grin, his blood speckled hair. It was a needless worry. All I saw when I looked at George was the boy I loved. The sweet, innocent, lovely, handsome, funny, kind, and clever boy I loved with all my heart

Not quite all of it, Love. Not anymore. Sirius corrected and I knew I was true. Just as I was compelled to look at George, I was called to turn to Sirius. Not knowing what to expect, I shouldn't have been surprised to see a gentle smile on his face. He said nothing as our eyes met because he didn't need to. We both knew he was right. We nodded at each other and his smile widened.

When I turned back to George, I saw his expression had changed. It was aged, darkened, and tested. His eyes were slate and his mouth was set. When his eyes narrowed, I knew it was something to do with Sirius. A second later, when he joined me at my side I understood.

Well, no. Understood is not accurate at all. I had absolutely no idea how I ended up in the middle of a love triangle, but here we all stood—literally positioned in a triangle, Sirius and George making two rather sharp points.

It was Fred who broke the tension, although not without evidence of his own amusement. "Harry and Ron are outside waiting to say goodbye to you, Sirius. You too, I guess, Andibear."

"And how exactly did you know that Black would be departing from his…home? Or know that Andrella is here? Or get past my wards for that matter?" Snape cut into the conversation, ever the perceptive and effective spy.

George answered, staring directly at Sirius as he answered. "There isn't one thing about Drella that I do not know. Only Drella's magic can keep me away from her."

I felt my knees buckle at the sound of my nickname. Truly believing I would never hear it again, I was trembling from the shock. It was Sirius' hands that gripped my arm and kept me upright. While steadying me physically, it did nothing for my mind wobbling in confusion. Neither did George's narrowing glare.

"What in Merlin's name is going on here?" Ron's bewildering voice broke the tension as he and Harry stumbled into the mouth of the cave.

I'm sure from Ron's perspective this was a rather incomprehensible gathering. It was clear by his expression he was still working through the confusion as his glance jumped from face to face. Harry stood next to him taking in the sight with more composure. I suppose it would take more to surprise the kid at this point, considering all that's happened to him just this year alone.

Sirius still held onto me so when he began laughing, my entire body shook with it. "Hello, Harry, Ron. Tell me, should I be expecting any more guests for my surprise farewell party?"

"Nope. Hermione hates flying but sends her regards." Harry laughed in stride, adding with a wicked grin. "And we couldn't think of anyone else that likes you. Though if I knew the invite list stretched to include mortal enemies I'm sure we could have found more people to attend."

This got a range of amused responses from everyone but Snape. It was the breath of laughter we needed to cool down the atmosphere. We had real enemies out there, we didn't need to be at each other's throats or locked in pissing matches.

"I suppose we all have some explaining to do. Might as well take the time to clear the air." Sirius offered, retrieving his wand from his pocket.

This action did not require Sirius' hand to roam over my side or linger on my hip and yet he did it in a way that appeared natural enough that no one called it out. Likely all distracted by the lazy flick of his wand that transfigured some of the larger stones into cushy, oversized couches around the neglected fire. George was the only one not fooled, his scowl as worrying as it was exciting.

It was wrong of me to be excited by George's apparent jealousy. I knew that. It was just hard to care about morality when it felt so gratifying. This was a smaller part of the cruelness I could be capable of, I knew that, and yet…

"Shall we?" Came Snape's signature taunting drawl. The raised eyebrow of his expression now spoke of amusement. With a shaky nod, I brought my mental shields back up. For this meeting of the minds, I wanted my own mind to be all mine—as much as it could be.

With Snape and Sirius flanking me in the most touching yet odd show of solidarity, I made my way over to the fire to take a seat on one of the summoned sofas. Snape and Sirius took seats on either side of me on the smaller couch. Remus sat in the lone chair to the right of Sirius. That left the last four sitting across from us on the largest couch. George sat directly across from me, his glance burning my thigh where it combined with the heat of Sirius' hand as if George could somehow see it resting there beneath the cover of my cloak.

I could feel the smug amusement and total sense of ease soaking in from Sirius where he touched me on my right. It was jarring in comparison to the feelings rolling off Snape from my left. Uneasiness, barely controlled panic, fear, and worry. For himself —A solitary snake in a lion's den. For me—hunted.

I took a few breaths to come back to myself, sorting through the overwhelming sensation of feeling others emotions so intensely.

I did my best impersonation of Neviah and asked myself. But what do you feel, Andrella?

I felt like this was going to be one hell of a round table. One for the records, of that I was sure. As sure as the fact that it was bound to go off script.

Let the fun and games begin.

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'Ello lovely readers! I hope you enjoyed all the twists and turns this chapter took. I thought it would be fun with it being the 40th Chapter!!!

I already have a lot of the next few chapters written out...BUT... since it IS a nice milestone and fits in nicely to what's already planned and written...

Do you have any burning questions you want answered? Anything you're confused about or want explained in greater detail?

I have a timeline for when and how I am going to be revealing certain things, of course, butI felt compelled to ask. This story has been the rock in my life for over a decade. To anyone one reading this, old or new, I am greatly appreciate you.

Anyway...the next chapter will be spilt in three parts. And I'd love to include answers to any questions you may have.

Ex's & Oh's

Audrey V. Sullivan