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Sirius


I accompany Remus down into the cellar. We have decided to risk leaving the children alone for this night. I cannot leave Remus alone as long as we are not sure that our potion actually works. The cellar has been cleaned and dried, we have cushion charmed the floor and the walls and there is a nest of blankets and pillows on a broad, thick mattress on the floor. There is no window in this room and it's pitch black when we enter, but we light a few candles. Unfortunately it's not very high, so Remus leaves his clothes outside the door on a chair. I cast warming charms, then close the door and spell lock it from the inside. Remus will be unable to open it, as there would be several keys to be turned and a bolt pulled away and of course the locking charm as well.

Remus is restless in the minutes before the transformation starts. I try to take him down on the bed, but he is jumpy and stares at me with an almost feral look.

"Remus, just sit down already! There's nothing that can be changed anymore, we can only wait! Don't make this harder for yourself than you need to!"

He sighs and sits down for what must be five minutes, then jumps up again, but right after that the transformation starts and he cries out:

"Padfoot! Change!"

I wait for another few minutes, but when the wolf starts to take form I transform into the dog. I run right to him and try to sooth him. He's in the last stages now and howls, then whines and finally stands still, trembling and catching breath.



Remus


It's over for another time. I catch my breath and try to think. I'm still fine and feel as well as I feel after taking Severus' potion. And I realise that I'm finally free from him, I'm not depending on an unpleasant colleague anymore and I feel like I could sing. I whine and touch Padfoot's snout, lick his nose and gaze into his pale eyes. I trot right to the mattress and lie down. It's not going to be the really long night I was afraid of. I yip a few barks and Sirius is at my side immediately. He licks my face, then starts to lick behind my ears and finally moves down to my - cock??? Sirius! What the heck are you doing there? Oh. My. God.... Oh, but this feels... nice... I throw my head around and bark. He turns away from me for a few seconds to look me over, then gives my nose a short lick again.

This is very strange. Does he really want sex? He can't be serious, oh hell, of course he's Sirius, I know that by now, but this is unreal! Hey, we've done quite a lot of crazy things, but I can't remember ever making out in our animal forms! He's keeping it up though. I whine. It feels unbelievable! I think I have to see if I can return it... he licks and licks, but I'm not getting anywhere. Finally I get impatient and jump up, the friction is driving me crazy and seemingly it's almost impossible to make me come. Padfoot looks at me, but I'm quickly forcing him to stand still, while I approach him from behind, licking underneath his tail and finding that opening that I want to breach. I've never done this, but I quickly jump on his back and force my cock inside. And then the sensation starts! Oh Merlin, this is unbelievable. I can feel my cock swell and fill Padfoot even more. I hear his whine and a few angst filled barks, but when I want to pull back I realise that I'm trapped! I start to move inside of him as much as I can and it feels incredible, it seems to get better every minute. It's exhausting, too, holding myself up on him with my front paws. In my exhilaration I nip his neck, once, twice, again and again. I don't know how long it takes, I have lost the sense of time as the delicious friction keeps me going until I can finally feel the final climax approaching. I can feel it and then I'm coming, a long howl breaks from my throat and it only ebbs away with the last drop of semen that leaves my body.

Padfoot flops down on the mattress immediately. I pull back and drop down next to him. His head swings around and he licks himself, then he looks at me with wide eyes. And finally he transforms, watching me, but I'm okay, so I don't do more than turn my head around to see what he's going to say. I cock my head a bit, but he doesn't seem to know what he wants to say.

"Now there's a surprise," he finally brings forth.

He sits up and crosses his legs. I turn around and put my head in his lap, with a playful yip. He strokes over my head and back, scratches me behind my ears and I sigh, because it feels so good. I can smell his hard cock under the fabric of his sweatpants. I nudge it with my nose and he chuckles.

"Don't have enough, do you? I didn't expect you to react with such passion, Moony. I think I've just learned my lesson. All right, all right, I take them off already... but you know the rules: NO teeth!"

I growl. Of course I know the rules. I just want to lick it and my tongue is rather long enough, now isn't it? He pulls the garment down and before he has it off I push my nose through his arms and get a first lick of that wonderful flesh. He's rock hard. Oh and he smells delicious. As a wolf I can get those scents even stronger than as a human. I lick and he holds his cock up for me, so it gives him the friction he needs. It doesn't take long and he cries out his pleasure.

"Moony! - Oh holy shit, this is good! Now! That's it, just a bit more..."

And then he explodes and my taste buds explode as well as I lick every single drop from his cock, hand and belly. He sinks down on the mattress, pulls some pillows under his head and some of the blankets up to cover himself. I have my fur now, so I don't need to be covered, but I cuddle up to him and we can go to sleep. It's not going to be the long night I feared.



Sirius


Holy fucking shit that was... crazy? Incredible? Bestial? I don't know about all of that, but it hurt like hell in the beginning. He's really a beast, but what a lovable one. He's pushing his snout under my chin right now and I can't but kiss him quickly and tell him I love him. I think I might have taken him by surprise, but he's probably shocked me like I've never been shocked before in my life. All I wanted to do was lick his privates for a while and he pounces me. I'm still full of indignation, but of course I only act it.

The way he trusts me and cuddles up to me now is absolutely sweet. I love you, Remus, I'll love you until I draw my last breath and nothing will take you away from me before then, I think, before sleep finally overtakes me.



Remus


I wake up and have no idea what time it is, as it's pitch dark inside the cellar room. I'm still in my wolf form, so the moon hasn't set yet. Sirius sleeps next to me, his hand holding me close to him. I stretch a bit and turn around to press my back to Sirius and stretch out my legs. I'm happy to feel so relaxed. I even might be able to teach today.

Then I nudge Sirius, because I can feel the transformation to start and I don't want him in his human form when I'm transforming. It is still very painful and if I lash out and bite him accidentally, well, I don't even want to think about it! Sirius seems to get the idea, because he transforms as well and sooths me with a few licks behind my ears. I jump up and go to the other side of the cellar, but he's after me in a moment and shoves me onto the warm mattress. He gets up and leaves the space to me, stands next to me and watches me. How I love him! How I love his caring and how easy it is to give in to his insistence of nurturing me. Only Sirius could ever be like that for me. I can't even imagine how I managed for fourteen years without him.

But then I lose all control over my body and mind. There's only pain. My bones start to crack as they shift. My head seems to split in two while the long snout morphs back into my smooth human face. It hurts like hell to feel my fangs retreat and get my regular teeth back. The vanishing fur is easiest to take, but it itches me all over and I don't even know where to start scratching. And it's no use to try it with my otherwise so convenient wolf's hind legs, as they are shifting into my human legs right now and my front legs are still completely useless. So I give in and live with the itching as I'm living with the pain of the rearranging of my bones. I collapse into a small heap of a human being, curled up in an aching ball on the mattress.

Sirius is back the next moment. He opens the door and fetches my robes, covers me and then he carries me up the stairs, through the kitchen and into the bathroom. I sink on the thick mat in front of the tub while he draws the bath for me. He takes off my robes and lifts me into the water, scented with lavender to sooth me. I give him a weak smile, as he gently washes me with a washcloth.

"Hey!" he says in a low voice.

"Hey! - It's worked, love. You've done it right!" I manage to croak.

In spite of the night's sleep I'm very exhausted.

"Yes, it's worked. I'm so relieved, sweetheart, I was close to tears when you trotted to lie down. That's when I knew we've done it all right."

I give him another tired smile and he comes close to kiss me. Then he finishes washing me, drains the bath, dries me and drapes my dressing gown around me. He wants to carry me upstairs, but I protest and say:

"I can walk up, love, you just have to hold me up a bit..."

"Okay, if you want to. Here, let me help you!" he insists and puts his arm around the small of my back to hold me up.

I lay mine around his shoulder and slowly we walk up to our bedroom, where Sirius helps me to bed.



Sirius


He's asleep seconds after I lower him down on the bed. I'm taking off the dressing gown and quickly turn him around to take it away from the bed, but he notices nothing of that. I cover him with the duvet and let him sleep, while I go and take my shower and get dressed.

Because it's been the night of the full moon we have switched the schedule, I'm doing my lessons on Monday and Friday, Remus takes Tuesday and Thursday. When I get back down to the kitchen Dobby surprises me with a freshly brewed pot of coffee. I sit down at my usual place and thank him.

"I'd not say no to some breakfast now, Dobby."

"I is bringing breakfast immediately, Master Black."

"Thanks, Dobby."

"Is Professor Lupin well, Master Black?" Dobby dares to inquire.

"Yes, Dobby, the potion worked just fine and he's sleeping now. You didn't hear anything, did you?"

"Oh no, sir! I is not hearing anything."

"Good. Then the kids haven't either, you and Winky would have been closest."

The two house-elves occupy one of the cellar rooms, nicely prepared for them with a bright wall paint and furniture after their liking. There are two owls at the window and I wave my wand to open it, so they can get inside. I take the Daily Prophet from one and the letter from the second. It's addressed for Parvati and Padma, so I put it down at their place. Dobby brings the breakfast and I browse the newspaper while I enjoy my breakfast.

"Dobby, could you check on Professor Lupin later on and maybe bring him some tea and a piece or two of toast?"

"Yes, master!"

"Thank you."

Ginny and Hermione are coming down early. They see me and immediately want to know how Remus' night has been.

"I couldn't sleep all night, Sirius! How has he been?" says Hermione.

"You can calm down, Hermione, we've done everything right and he's just suffering from the actual transformations. I've slept most of the night in my human form next to him," I reply with a smile.

"Oh, great! I'm so relieved! I was really a bit scared and wasn't sure if we did it well."

"You can both stop biting your nails now. He's upstairs and sleeping. He needs some rest from the transformation back, so we'll do as planned, I'll teach today."

"I'm so glad, Sirius. We'll continue to make it, then?" Ginny asks.

"Yes, we will. We'll do it together until we've got some routine, then we'll start doing individually, okay? This way we'll have a back up if we need one."

"Okay."

The girls sit down at their places and Winky brings their breakfast. Hermione smiles at her and brightly wishes her a good morning, thanking her for the breakfast.

"Thank you, Winky," says Ginny.

Then the other students slowly file in until they're all around. They all ask after Remus and, hearing of his well being they turn to their breakfast and today's classes. I tell them that I will take them.

"Nice to tell us this early, Sirius, I've just put in a night with almost no sleep to finish that homework Remus wanted back today," Ron grumbles.

I laugh.

"Believe me, I know the feeling, Ron, but as your teacher I have to say you shouldn't wait that long," I tell him off mildly.

"See! What I preach you forever, Ron!" adds Hermione.

"Oh, but you say that from the first day we get it!" Ron protests.

"And so? It's off your back if you've done it right away. That gives you more free time."

"Yes, mother," he grumbles.

I notice that Harry keeps well out of the argument. Then I look around the table and notice, that Ron and Ernie have switched places at the table, so that Ron now sits next to Justin and Ernie has the place next to Ginny. Hm. Do I have to watch those two?

I get up to go and gather what I need for the Transfiguration lessons ahead. I've got a few minutes of extra time and decide to go ahead and enlarge the map we've now finished. I bring the enlarged map and my books to the classroom and look for a good place to hang up the map. The largest open space is on the right side of the fireplace. I send it there and muse whether we need it at all times, or whether I should cover it with a password like the Marauder's Map.

Justin, Parvati and Padma are the first ones to come into the classroom. They see the map and close up to look at it, expecting it to be something needed for the lesson.

"What's that?" Justin asks.

"That's a map of the house here, the Stöckli and the warded area around the house. Look at it, then you can tell me what it shows..." I say.

"Hey, we're all moving on it!" Padma remarks.

"That's right. It's kind of a spy to make sure, that we don't get unwanted guests. You see, we all show with a black dot, pretty big, because I've made it so large."

"I can see that. And there's Crookshanks... and the other cats! And the dog... Bäri even comes up with his name, wow!"

"That's right. The blue dots are the animals. Now watch out. I transform and you tell me what's changing..."

I transform into the dog and Padma squeals.

"Oh, now you're showing with your name, but the colour of your dot changed to blue, Sirius!"

I return and grin.

"See how clever? We've found the spell to change the colours for Animagi who turn up in their Animagus form. There's something else, which you can only see when there's a Death Eater in the vicinity of the wards. Death Eaters would come up with red dots and their names. That is why we made the map. If any Death Eaters are coming close we can see it on the map. We are going to make several copies, so we remain informed."

"That's ingenious!" Parvati whispers.

"I have to say, that I'm quite proud of our little masterpiece..."

The other students come in and I tell them that the map is not there to spy on their private lives but to find out whether we get unwelcome guests.

"I leave the spying on your private lives to yourselves," I say with a grin.

They take it with humour and laugh. Blaise asks:

"Where did you get the idea to this? This is really great!"

"Well, my friends and I made something like this for Hogwarts when we went to school. So we could sneak around without being caught, mostly to go down to the kitchens. We found the spells in a very clever book in the library. So Remus had the idea to make something like this for here, too, because it's really a great device, and I went to look for the book and actually found it! Neat thing, believe me. We had to alter some of the spells, but Remus is pretty good in this, so we could include the colour change for the Death Eaters. Or the Animagus thing, too. We think this is a nifty aid to protect us."

"Great idea! Does that old map still exist?"

I don't want to expose Harry's secret and tell them that Filch had confiscated it shortly before we left school. Then we start our work and get a bit more serious.

Remus turns up for lunch. He looks well rested now and I'm pleased to see how all the students welcome him back. I notice, that Ginny and Ernie are still sitting next to each other and then it occurs to me that she's also been sitting next to him in class.



Remus


I have taken a long nap in the morning and when I wake up I find a pot of tea and a few pieces of toast on my small table next to the armchair. It's charmed to stay hot as I notice immediately. I'm really quite hungry, so I sit up, stretch and moan a bit, because my joints are the sorest points every time after the transformation. They take the brunt of the breaking and reshaping, and they hurt the longest. I sigh, get up and put the dressing gown back on, then I sit on my armchair and enjoy my breakfast. While I drink my second cup of tea, I relax into the armchair and pick up my book. A flick of my wand gets me better light.

When I hear Sirius and the students enter the kitchen for lunch I put the book down and get up. I get dressed and join them for lunch. I make sure to thank Ginny and Hermione for their participation in brewing the Wolfsbane potion successfully. They both beam and look very satisfied. I sit down next to Siri and give him a peck on the cheek.

"Hello there, love," he says and looks me over.

"Hello there yourself, love," I reply. "I'm fine and I'm well rested, mother," I add.

He grins and returns the peck.

"The Daily Prophet is in the study, Remus, just in case you want to read it this afternoon," Sirius tells me.

"Oh, good. I'll pick it up."

"I've copied and enlarged the map, Moony, I've hung it next to the fireplace in the class room. It's so big you can read the names from the table!"

I laugh. That'll give us a slight advantage in case one of them should be able to turn up. As soon as they're just outside the wards... it will take them at least thirty minutes to take down the outer wards, then there are two more layers inside. The alarm for Death Eaters is down in the kitchen and in our bedroom as well. Of course I hope we'll never need it.

After the meal the kids spend some time outside. It's cold and grey, but dry, so they go out and take a walk or talk quietly in the yard outside of the classroom. I take an espresso over to the study to sit down and first grade the Charms essay that needs to be graded for the next day's lesson. The subject we treated was a first look into the building of spells. I pick the first piece of parchment and my quill to go over it. It's Ginny's. She's been very active in classes since we've started and I'm not surprised that she gets along with the fifth years very well. I'll have to send Arthur and Molly a letter to tell them that they can be very proud of their daughter indeed. She has written a well researched essay. Well structured, detailed and clear. There's not much to be deducted and I think that even Filius would have given her the best grade.

Ernie has a bit more difficulties. He's still got to read a bit to comprehend this bit of theory. Of course it's not every witch or wizard's ability to learn how to build their own spells. Still, he gets a B.

I finish off my Grappa, then I get up and put some CDs into the charger and turn on the player. Haydn's string quartets always lift my spirits. I smile. I remember it was Sirius who brought these CDs back from a shopping trip in Bern. He knows how much I like the music.

Back to the essays. It takes me another hour to get through the pile, but then I can put them together to hand them back the next day. I enter the grades into the class journal and the report back to Hogwarts. Then I pick up the Daily Prophet and sit down in the living room to read. Sirius finds me here, when he finishes his classes. He puts down his books and parchments, then he comes and sits beside me.

I look up and meet his lips for a lingering kiss. The paper drops on my lap and from there to the floor as he deepens the kiss and prods my lips apart to meet my tongue. I snake my arms around his shoulders and pull him closer. As always when we kiss my heart pounds and I know he feels it as well, but he's just smiling into the kiss.



Sirius


Sweet, sweet Remus! Do you know that you have not changed the smallest bit since we fell in love with each other? However life has been treating you in those dreadful long years, as soon as you kiss me you're just exactly the same as you were when we were sixteen. It's wonderful to feel your heart beating! Your fingers are the same nimble fingers of back then and your kisses taste just as sweet! I'm convinced that will never change and I'm feeling happier than I've ever felt before.

While we kiss I open my eyes and gaze into yours, love, and I know I could drown in those golden brown pools. Finally we let go and you come closer, straddle me and lay your head on my shoulder. I gently caress you and feel your arms around my body.

"I love you, Remus. You're beautiful and your kisses are the most incredible things I know! I'll never get tired of kissing you, love!"

I feel his lips curling into a smile. He just sighs happily. Then one of the teenagers comes into the front room and sits down at the computer. Remus straightens up and sits back next to me. He picks up the Daily Prophet and puts the parts he's read down. I fish the page with the crossword puzzle and go to the study to pick up a quill. Then I sit at the table in the kitchen to go through the puzzle.



Harry


I hear them untangling themselves and have to smile. It's not been more than three or four minutes since we've finished today's classes and already they're snogging. They're worse than teenagers. Now wait, I'm a teenager and I'm really not that bad. I never did anything more than a bit of groping around. Though that really doesn't express what we felt, Hermione and I.

Sirius passes me on the way to the kitchen, where I see him sitting down at the table next to the window to fill in the crossword puzzle in the Daily Prophet. It's such a peaceful image that I jump up and get the camera to take a picture of him. Anyone seeing this should get the idea that this man would never ever harm anyone. At least no one who wasn't a Death Eater.

The computer has started. I'm doing some typed work for an essay, then I save it and turn to a bit of playing. After half an hour it gets too lonely though and I turn the whole thing off to join the others over in the common room.

It's great to be a whole class here. I wouldn't have believed that school can really be fun! I realised that I'm actually very good at Potions if I don't have Snape breathing down my neck. Siri really teaches us. He does criticize, but he doesn't humiliate anyone. If he makes fun he does it in a way we can all laugh about ourselves without feeling bad. Today it was Justin. He got a bit beetle eye happy and threw in a full spoonful too much. We all laughed ourselves silly, but Justin was laughing the loudest. He didn't have time to do it again during class, but Sirius lets him work on the potion now after class. He doesn't fuss. We take the subject serious, but it's not as if the world falls apart if something goes wrong.

I pass Justin who's almost done now.

"Did it work out better this time, Justin?"

"Oh yes! I really don't know how I could miscount the number of spoonfuls... it's going to be done in a few minutes."

I give him the thumbs up and climb the stairs. Hermione has taken her homework up to the common room where the daylight comes in better than in the library. She sits on a sofa and reads. I put down my bag and sit down beside her.

"Hello love!" she says and doesn't even look up.

"How'd you know it's me?" I ask, baffled.

Now she looks up and grins. I scoot a bit closer and get a kiss from her, then she says:

"I can feel it. It feels different when you're near me than anyone else."

"Oh."

I'm amazed, but Ron snorts from the next armchair. He's pulled up and folded his long legs on the squashy big armchair and he says:

"Honestly, Hermione, you're not making me believe that you can actually FEEL Harry without seeing him!"

"Well, just you wait, Ron Weasley, until the right boy comes along, then you'll know what I know. Or maybe not. You might be too thick to even recognise the right one."

She's a bit mean now! But for once he decides not to argue and continues to scribble some notes out of his book. I sigh and pull my Transfiguration homework out of the bag. Sirius has finished lecturing about human-animal transfigurations and has given us a huge essay to write. We had to pull slips with different animals, and of course I got a different one than Ron or Hermione.

"Has anyone pulled a rabbit?" I ask the others in the room.

"I've got a hare..." says Ginny, "Wonder if that's in any way different."

"We could check the sources."

Hermione looks up.

"That's funny. I wonder if he did that on purpose, because Morag has a donkey and I have a horse."

"You mean choose animals that are somehow closer to each other? That's interesting, maybe he really did it on purpose," Ginny muses.

We discuss the homework for a while. Then I start to read until it's time for dinner. Winky calls us down. We leave our work and go down to the kitchen. I like the meals. They give much more a sense of family here than at Hogwarts. We're still thirteen people at the table, but that is not too many.

After dinner I pick up the Daily Prophet and study the adverts for ideas for Christmas presents. I know it's early, but I'm so little talented in having ideas for them that I look around rather early. There's an advert for an owl order catalogue and I tear it out. Then I fill it in and ask Remus if I can send it with Racer. Hedwig has a rather easy life right now as we do not want to draw attention to ourselves because she's white. Anana of course is out of the question. There would be Morgana, Parvati's and Padma's owl, but she's out right now as is Ron's Pigwidgeon. Apart from them Justin, Blaise, Mandy and Morag have their own owls, but Justin's is a snowy owl like Hedwig, so we can't use him. I haven't seen Mandy's tawny owl for a while, so I think she must be on an errand as well.

"Yes, of course you can send it with Racer. - Which just makes me think... we could give Hedwig and Neptune another colour until they would be safe again, what do you think? Up in the mountains here the snowy owls change between winter and summer plumage, white in winter, grey brown in summer, we could give them the grey brown feathers of the summer plumage, what do you think?" Remus suggests.

"Oh that sounds great, Remus, let's do that. Then I can send this with Hedwig."

"I'll have to check the spell compendium for that, I don't think I know the spell right now..." Remus says and gets up to fetch the book.

He brings a small book back and opens it. I look over his shoulder and I'm sure it's empty, but he mumbles something like:

"Let's see. Change colour, change colour... ah, there it is!"

An article with the incantation, the spell purpose, its theory and build, even when it was invented comes up on an empty page. He reads it carefully, then pulls out his wand and does the wand movements, then he says:

"Should be easy. I'll do it with Hedwig. I'll ask Justin if he wants me to do it with Neptune as well..."

"Remus! That book was empty! Then you just said..."

He looks at me. Then he grins and points at the book.

"It's a rare book, Harry and really one of my top prized possessions. It just looks empty, but it actually brings up every spell ever written if you just think of what you need it brings you what's in existence already. It can be one spell or ten different spells. What's best is that it updates itself. So you can see how valuable it is!"

"Wow! Everything there is? Spells, hexes, jinxes, curses, everything?"

"Spells. Nothing else. No curses, no hexes, nothing of that sort, it's really for charms and spells."

"That's great."

Two minutes later Hedwig is brown. She doesn't seem to like it too much, but when I pick her up and explain to her that it's for her and our protection she seems to accept it. I give her the envelope into which I've put the parchment slip.

"Here, girl, something to do for you! Wait for the catalogue to take it home. This way I didn't have to put our address in..."

I let Hedwig out and she takes off.



Hermione


Today we'll go out for Muggle Studies. It's always an excuse for Sirius and Remus to take us on an outing. We were allowed to choose from several options: the zoo in Basle, the museum of communication in Bern or a trip to the Swiss National Museum in a castle in Prangins.

We have chosen the zoo. So we get dressed in the morning and right after the breakfast we get packed into the van, which has been magically enlarged of course, so it seats us all comfortably and drive down the mountain to Lützelflüh, through the Emmental to the highway and then to Basle. It's a good hour and a half until we get there. Remus knows a parking house, from where we get to the zoo by public transport. Except for Harry, Justin and me no one really knows how to work out a route on a public transport network, so this is part of the lesson. We have our wands with us, but of course we're not supposed to use them. So Remus explains the use of the automatic ticket machines and the map on them to find out how to get there. He has a purse of coins and I point to a vending machine that sells cards for more than one trip instead of single tickets. We buy three of them, because there's only ten trips on one. Ron drops the coins until the cards are coming out. Morag and Blaise cancel the tickets. Then we have to wait for the correct tram. We also have to change once, but we find our way to the zoo nicely. Ernie has to buy the tickets for us all. He is clever enough to ask for a group ticket and gets it because we are more than twelve.

It's a nice zoo. I get a guide at the entrance and read about it for a bit. There's a website mentioned, so I make sure to keep the guide and check the site when I get to the computer next.

I take Harry's hand as we stroll through the animal park. It's quite nice until the afternoon, when there seem to be schoolchildren everywhere all of a sudden. Remus explains to us that the local schools are all out on Wednesday afternoon and that many children come to the zoo then. There's a special children's zoo where they can help tend animals.

The day passes nicely, it's not exactly beautiful weather, but there's a little sunshine through the clouds and it's not raining. I watch Ginny and Ernie who also hold hands and once she's turning to me and I wink. She smiles. I know she's quite happy with Ernie who adores her.

Harry moves his hand up and puts it around my shoulder. I snake mine around his waist. Remus and Sirius watch us, holding hands themselves.

"Remus and Sirius are amazing. They would never lie about their being a couple, no matter how people stare..."

"I'm always trying to imagine how they would stare if they knew that Remus isn't only gay but also a werewolf," Harry says in a very low voice.

I look at the two men who walk just a few metres in front of us. It's good for Sirius, I think, to be here, away from that country where he's nothing but a fugitive. Okay, he has no papers and lives here illegally, but he has the perfect disguise. Back home his Animagus form is at least known amongst the Death Eaters, so spying on them would be out of the question and openly fighting against them is just as impossible. So he gets at least some respite here. He has filled out again. And boy, I have to think of Harry when I see those tight fitting jeans he wears, showing off nice long legs and lovely round buttocks. The rest of his body slowly looks nice, too. He's got fairly broad shoulders again, his hair is shiny and has already grown out a bit again. It falls nicely just below his shoulder blades and he wears it open. Oops, I think he felt me staring, because he turns around and gives me one of his beautiful smiles. Honestly, it's no wonder Remus is so in love with him. He has the nice personality to match this near perfect body.

"Knut for your thoughts, Hermione," Harry says next to me.

I laugh.

"What would you say if I tell you that I've been checking out Siri's arse?" I say coyly.

He breaks out laughing and then pinches my nose.

"Gosh, Hermione, he's 36 and he's as gay as any man can be!"

"So? Still some lovely food for the eyes, don't you think?"

"Well, I'm not quite that gay, you know, that's why I'm with you!" he reminds me.

Now I laugh again, too. We stop and kiss, I feel Sirius look back again and just sink into the wonderful feeling that's Harry Potter's kiss and forget that I've been checking out a gay man who's 20 years older than I. When Harry lets go I reluctantly follow and sigh. I resolve to check out contraception spells or potions soon. There's surely something in the library... or in that book of Remus'... I'm sure he lets me check. Not that HE needs them, lucky guy!



Sirius


Young love! Were we ever that young and sweet, Remus and I? I wonder. I hold Remus' hand tightly, play with his fingers and look at him. He's just a few inches shorter than me, but he used to be quite a lot smaller when we started out. He has followed my gaze and when we turn back, he smiles.

"They are cute, aren't they?" he asks.

"Absolutely. I've just been wondering if we were that cute, the two of us. I know James and Lily were sweet to watch, too. I'm glad, Harry gets easier with Hermione. He's got so many issues with close personal contacts. He won't even really hug you or me."

"That's true, but don't forget that since Lily and James died he never was hugged. The last time was probably Hagrid, when he said goodbye to him..."

"I know. That's why he has it so hard. I'm quite convinced that little Hermione will pull him along though."

"Oh, that girl is way ahead of him emotionally. But she has a big heart and she can be very persistent, so I think she'll manage."

I haven't been outside of the house in two months. It's the first time since before term started that I'm really at ease outside and it does me a lot of good! I'm happy where we are, but I'm scooped up and I can't do much. Teaching the kids, preparing lessons and grading tests and essays do occupy me enough to go crazy, but I notice that I need outings like this. I long to get that bloody rat, which keeps me from taking my rightful place in the wizarding society, but I fear that even if we catch it and I get my name cleared I won't trust any of them anymore. I'll most probably always be an outcast, but I have Remus, and together we'll be fine. I move my hand from his hand to around his shoulder and he leans in to me, holding me around my waist.

We leave the zoo in the middle of the afternoon and find our way back to the parking house. Then we have to find our way back to the highway and then home. When we pass Lützelflüh it is already so familiar that I'm itching to reach our farmhouse, because it means warmth and home. After parking the car and entering the kitchen I move directly to the classroom to check the map. We have finally charmed it with a password. If it's closed it looks like an oversized wizarding poster of the Weird Sisters. I speak the password and tap the map with my wand.

Everything is fine. No Death Eater anywhere, no Wormtail either. Somehow I wish he'd run straight into our trap. Maybe then Fudge would start to accept that Voldemort is back.

Dobby and Winky serve dinner soon after and then Remus and I go up to our bedroom. We've done the driving and are both tired. I really feel like a bit of cuddling tonight. Remus lies next to me and reads, but when I scoot up to him he puts the book away. He kisses me and rakes through my hair with his long fingers. We kiss again and I pull him as close as I can. He starts to push the duvet to the foot end of the bed and straddles me, pinning me to the mattress in the process.

Oh, he's hot! I can already feel his erection on my cock and the wonderful friction it causes makes me moan into his mouth. My arms close around his shoulders. He props himself up on his elbows and leaves my mouth. While he starts to wander over my body there's nothing I can do but moan his name again and again.



Remus


By Merlin, he's beautiful. Even the girls start to notice how well his body has recovered now and I'm sure Hermione was checking him out today. It was almost funny and it made me devilishly horny to know she must have found him sexy. He's all mine! I'm not even sure I want his name cleared some days just to make it more sure he remains mine! I must be obsessed, but I've missed him so badly that there will never be time to make up for the lost fourteen years. Every time I make love with him I can't keep from thinking that I've missed fourteen years worth of THIS!

I move from his mouth to his earlobes, lick and suck them and then lightly bite them, for which I get another moan out of him. Ooh, I love to hear him moan! We've both got control issues, he can't often really let go, but tonight he seems willing to completely let himself be taken. I'll do that taking, love! I start by gently nipping from your ear over your throat to the crook of your neck. Mm, I get your scent best at this point! I'd always recognise you by this scent, no matter what kind of perfume you throw on yourself. Though I'm glad that I've trained you not to use any at all a long time ago and you haven't forgotten. I want your natural scent, the musky, earthy one that is so typical you, Siri, not any artificial horror which only burns and insults my fine olfactory senses. Yes, that's right, push up, let me feel that beautiful cock of yours and I'll get closer down there soon. More musk and spicier. But first there are two wonderful deeply red buds that need to be treated. Ooh, they're hard already.

"You're wonderful, love!" I whisper, before I suck one of his nipples in my mouth.

Looking down on my mate I'm always amazed at how little body hair he has. There are a few stray hairs around his nipples and there's a fine line of black hair from his navel down to his pubic hair, a light dusting of more black hair on his legs and his underarms, but nothing else.

Licking my way down to his navel I hum and he purrs in bliss as the vibrations of my humming reach his nerves. I close up to this wonderful thick and heavy organ, the very thing I've missed for so long. It's not even been four months and we're so well acquainted with each other's body again. I give the head of his cock a first lick, pull the foreskin back and lick some more. His moans get louder. I take the cock into my hand, start to lightly fist it and interrupt that action with more licking and sucking of the head. I feel Sirius' hands on my back, as he caresses me and sometimes guides my head. I keep sucking and stretch out my hand, wriggling with my fingers and amazingly he gets my message and hands me the small jar with the lube. He even opens it for me and I stick my fingers inside, then leave it next to us while I gently move my finger to where he likes it best. Siri spreads his legs far apart. I nudge at his opening, spread it and push my finger inside. I take my time preparing him and he likes it so much that he protests when I pull my fingers back to slick my cock and enter him swiftly.

"Aww, that's where you belong, love! Gods, I love this!"

I push his knees upwards and thus his arse is better reachable and then I start to thrust. Sirius is already far up in the clouds and on the way to Kythera. I follow him there without further delay now and he meets every one of my thrusts with an upward movement of his hips. I lean down and kiss him. It's a slow, lingering kiss and we halt our thrusts for as long as it lasts. Then I continue to move inside of him. Oh god, this is home. It's just so good. I start to see stars and everything gets white and then I come. He only needs a few more moments of stroking his cock to follow me and spurts his seed all over us.

I swear there's nothing more beautiful than my lover when he reaches his orgasm. At the last moment his blue eyes open and he stares at me with that cry of my name out of his mouth. He pulls me close, lets his legs fall down on the bed and I slip out of him. I lie on top of him now and we gently caress each other in the afterglow of our climax.

He kisses me. Then he flips us around, so that we lie side by side and kisses me again. He glances at the watch and I ask lazily:

"What's the time?"

"Half past nine..." he replies and I snuggle up to him.



Sirius


He snuggles up and falls asleep right away. I kiss him tenderly and pull up the duvet. I know I'm the luckiest man on earth for I have this wonderful man in my arms, this incredible lover and the single one person on this planet who would do everything for me and more. If he ever worries that I could ever leave him - he has no idea! If there's one thing I could never do anymore it's leaving him. In just a few years Harry will be out there on his own two feet and he'll happily come home to see us, but he'll be mostly gone from my life. The one who will still be there will be Remus.

I remember back at school when I heard more than once that I don't even deserve Remus. How little they knew! No one knew better than I that I didn't deserve him, but I can proudly claim that my love for him never stopped. And it won't. Ever. How can I not love him?



Harry


Hedwig is back with the owl order catalogue. I thank her and pass her some of my toast and bacon. Then I leaf through the catalogue and gather some early ideas for Christmas presents. I leave it in the front room, whoever is interested can use it...

I already have my school bag with me, so I don't need to go and get my stuff anymore. I look at the clock on the kitchen wall just above the cooker. It says 7.30, so we have another half an hour of time. Ron is barging down the stairs. He was the only one who voted against starting lessons at 8 in the morning, and we didn't need to ask why. Every morning he mutters under his breath that he really doesn't like this. He sits down next to me and only starts to smile when Dobby brings him a well laden plate of bacon and eggs and his coffee. What! Ron drinks coffee?

"When did you start to drink coffee, Ron?" I ask.

"Er - last week... thought I'd give it a try once," he says.

"Oh. So you like it?"

"Yeah, I do actually."

Remus sips his second cup of tea and wonders:

"How can anyone drink coffee that early in the morning?"

"Well, at least it wakes me up enough for class," Ron says with a rueful smile.

"Good reasoning, Ron."

There are several conversations going on around the table. I'm actually finished with my breakfast, but I'm sitting between Hermione and Ron in the middle on the bench and it's a bit tight to squeeze out. Ron and Justin are still eating. Both have their school stuff either with them or already on their table in the class room. They compare the contents of the Defence essay we have to hand in today. Remus tries visibly not to listen into their conversation by talking quietly with Padma who sits next to him.

"Can I borrow your owl order catalogue, Harry?" Hermione asks.

"Sure. I left it on the coffee table in the front room, just pick it up there any time."

"Thanks."

Five minutes to eight Remus gets up and goes to get his things in the study. We start to get up as well and file into the class room. It's still fairly cool in here, but Justin has started the fire in the huge fireplace before breakfast. Justin and Ron take their seats on the last row, while I follow Hermione and Ginny to our places in the first row. Of course Ernie sits down next to Ginny. Blaise, Morag, Padma and Parvati take their places behind us and Mandy sits next to Justin. Remus collects the essays we've prepared for today. Then he starts his lecture, a short one today, as we are through with the shield charms, now we move on to duelling curses. He treats us with three of them and after learning them we get to practice for the rest of the double lesson. Remus gets all the tables and chairs out of the way and we are paired up and have to start throwing curses at each other and blocking them. We change the pairings around, so that we get to duel with as many of our class mates as possible.

Sirius watches and sometimes helps. He's just amazing with that wand of his. Now I truly understand why many people believed his being evil so easily. He's devilishly fast and fires spells in a breathtaking speed. And he obviously enjoys it, too. From where did he get this agility back? He's playing with Hermione and I and we both chase him, but he blocks most of our spells easily and hits us with things like Jelly Legs and Rictusempra. Hermione giggles and can hardly take the spell off herself. I help her, then we attack Sirius again. It's great fun, because we don't do anything that hurts right now.

The fun is over after the two lessons are through. We rearrange the tables, sit down and continue with the next subject. I'm not too fond of Ancient Runes, but it's better than Divination. We beginners have the written assignment today and the others get lectured.

Lunch is great today. Steaks and chips. Dobby has made garlic and herb butter to put on the steaks. There's salad from the greenhouse outside and we're allowed to drink Coke.

"That'll keep you awake in Charms!" Remus says, grinning.

"Why?" Ron asks.

"Because the main flavour in here comes from caffeine. So you probably won't fall asleep."

Ron seems to be particularly fond of the stuff and asks, why we can't have it more often. Remus explains that more than half of the contents of the bottle is sugar.

"There's Diet Coke, Remus," Hermione reminds him.

He looks at her with a look that tells her exactly what he thinks of Diet Coke.

"That's disgusting stuff, Hermione. No, I rather have it a bit less often, but the real thing! I have to teach Dobby to make Coke Floats for dessert once. Oh, and don't get me started on the Pepsi version, that is even worse than Diet Coke. And the diet version of Pepsi is about as bad as Diet Coke and Pepsi taken together."

Sirius laughs.

"There's my little purist," he says.



Ginny


Saturdays are our shopping days. Remus usually picks two or three of us and we drive to the big shopping centre to buy the groceries needed. Sometimes he drops a group of us at Burgdorf to take the train to Bern, so we can go on shopping trips ourselves. This time it's Ernie and I, and we are allowed to stay until four in the afternoon, when the shops close. We fix the date when our train will be back and we go off. Remus gives us the mobile phone he keeps for this and tells us:

"You know how to use it by now. If for some reason you can't make the train you need to give us a call, okay?"

"Okay. Should we leave it off?"

"No. Keep it on, just in case you need to. We're all protected by the Fidelius Charm, but you never know. Things can happen and we want to eliminate as much as possible of the danger. Now go and have fun!"

"Thanks, Remus!"

It's a bit of an adventure for us, because both of us are not all too familiar with the Muggle world, but Remus and Sirius think we have to grow into it and we can do it. So Ernie and I have to get the tickets for the train and then find the right track and get on the right train. I think we're lucky, we've made it. We sit down in a booth and have the space for ourselves. When we get to Bern we already know the way to the shops. It's lunch time and we buy some Döner Kebabs at a stand we pass. That stuff is really nice. We watch as the last market stands get dismounted under the arcades.

"So, where do you want to go?" Ernie asks me.

"Just walk around for a while first?" I offer.

"Okay. We could walk down to the big square and look at the other market stands."

"Yes, let's do that. At least until we gobbled up our kebabs."

It's a sunny, but fairly cold day in November. Six weeks more and it's already Christmas. Ernie and I walk on and we eat up. Then we reach the large open square and look at some of the market stands. Ernie wipes his mouth with the paper napkin and drops it into the next rubbish bin. He takes my hand and I hold him back, clean my own mouth and drop the napkin into the bin as well. We dive into the market stands. There's so much to see and I get some different essences for the diffuser. Ernie shops for some early Christmas presents. We go to a big book shop where we have a huge selection of Muggle books. Hermione has given me a list of authors to try, so we look in the paperback section to find some stuff to read. I discover a few things I like and buy at least five books. We finally head down to the wizarding section and shop for some more things.

Ernie is sweet, because he gets me another book, but in the wizarding bookshop. I choose one for him as well. Then we look at the time and notice that we have to hurry back to the station to catch the train we're supposed to take. We get there, just in time. When I board the train I catch a glimpse of a ray of sun on something metallic. I get into the train and sit down, looking out and I see a smallish man with something like a silver glove. Only he wears the glove on his right hand only.

"Oh Christ, that's not a glove," I mutter.

"What's up?" Ernie asks.

"Let's get away from where he could spot us, Ernie, on the other side! I think he hasn't seen me yet!" I whisper and duck out of sight.

"What is it?"

"Well, I think he can't spot us here. Look over there, right next to the end of the staircase. See that man with one silvery glove?"

"Yes, I do! Why only one? Strange, that he doesn't wear one on his other hand."

"That's because it's not a glove, Ernie, it's his silver hand! This fellow out there is Peter Pettigrew! - How the hell does he know we're here!"

"Let's call Remus. The train won't leave for another five minutes, he mustn't see us anymore."

"Under no circumstances. He knows me all too well! He's spent twelve years in my family in his rat form, Ernie!"

"Oh, I had forgotten about that."

Ernie looks around and watches Pettigrew, while I dial the number. Remus picks up the phone. I'm lucky!

"Remus, we've got a bit of a situation here. Ernie and I are on the train all right, but it's not due to leave for another four minutes and we see Peter Pettigrew sneaking around outside."

"He's definitely looking for us, Ginny! I can see him walking around the cars to look inside..."

"Ginny, stay where you are. Maybe you could hide in a toilet. He knows you, but he doesn't know Ernie and I doubt he will remember Ernie, even if he followed the two of you. And we'll watch the map closely. I'll be in Burgdorf to pick you two up. He can't know where you're going!"

"Okay, I'll go and hide out until we're off. I really hope he doesn't board the train."

"So do I. The train leaves in a short time, doesn't it?"

"Yes."

"We'll apparate in if need be. Stay in contact. I want you to call our other mobile phone every five minutes. If he boards the train and you can tell, inform us immediately, okay?"

"Okay."

"Try to stay away from using magic, but I want you both to have your wand at the ready."

"Will do, Remus."

"Fine. In five minutes then."

Ernie still looks for Wormtail and I give him the mobile phone and creep to the nearest toilet. Ernie sits down in the seat just outside and checks his watch. The train leaves.



Ernie


I'm really scared. If that's the man who killed thirteen Muggles with only one curse... I haven't seen him anymore, so I really hope he hasn't boarded the train. I quickly get close to the toilet and tell Ginny that I move a bit away, so if he should turn up I won't give her hiding spot away. Then I sit down in the next car and get one of the books out. I'm watching passers by surreptitiously. And really, ten minutes have passed when he walks by me, looking around for Ginny. He doesn't even stop to look at me, clearly he searches for her copper coloured hair. When he's out of the compartment I dial Remus' number.

"Lupin."

"Remus, it's Ernie. He's on the train. Ginny is hiding in a toilet right now and I'll tell her to stay in there. What can we do?"

"It's not such a long trip, tell her to stay in there, we'll be at the station. If he wants trouble he can have it."

"Okay."

But I keep watching and then I see him leaving the train at the next stop. Once the train is on the way again I go and tell Ginny to come out. I am so relieved. I call Remus again. Sirius takes the phone. They're already on the way to Burgdorf and I tell him that Wormtail has left the train.

"Good! Not that I wouldn't love to get my hands around his dratted neck, but I'm glad you're out of the danger for the moment."

"We'll get there soon. Only one more stop."

Ginny and I hold hands and cuddle until we get there. We quickly get out of the train and meet Remus and Sirius on the track. They accompany us to the car and we take off immediately. When we get back the maps get activated and we spend the evening in the classroom where we play some games.

There's nothing to be seen on the map, not until quite late. But then Sirius looks on it again and shortly afterwards we get the silver and Death Eater alarm from the clock on the kitchen wall.

"He's a rat, Siri. Let's watch the map closely. He'll find that he can't get into the house as a rat, we've sealed it off too well. So he'll probably try as a human."

"Yes, I think the same. We watch the map - Ginny, can you do that with the big one and can you do it with one of the small ones, Blaise?"



Sirius


So he's decided to look for us and actually found us. I wonder how he did that. On the other hand he knows about Remus' connections to Switzerland, he's been with us when we visited here back in 1977, the summer before our last year at Hogwarts. And of course he knew and must have recognised Ginny. We must catch him! We turn off all the lights.

"Do you think it wise to send Anana with a letter to Hogwarts, Remus?" I ask.

"Yes, I was just thinking I'd write that letter."

"Okay, do that. We can't do anything but wait. I have to hope he won't endanger Barb and Housi."

Remus blanches, but writes the note first and gives it to Anana who's always perching in the classroom. He lets her out.

"He's coming closer to the house now, Sirius, he's turning around the back of the greenhouse," says Ginny.

"Still blue?"

"Yes - no! Red now!"

"Good. That means he transformed."

Hermione, Harry and I are going to the end of the classroom where Wormtail has to turn up and I tell them to extinguish their wand lights except for the candle Ginny holds to see the map.

"He's coming to the front of the house," she whispers.

All of us are ready. Remus takes my place next to Hermione and Harry and I take Ron and Morag to the entrance of the house. He hasn't noticed that there are doors on the side. It's very dark and he won't be able to see us, but we see him when he tries to enter.

"Stunners in his direction, just one after the other, nothing else. Keep your heads low. As soon as he opens the door start using Stupefy," I tell the teens.

"Good. Just let him come!" says Morag.

Good girl! I think. We can hear him creep to the kitchen door now. He opens it and looks inside. Once he's filling the entrance all three of us start throwing stunners at him and one of them actually hits. Wormtail finds himself on the ground before he's completely inside of the house. We flick on all the lights immediately. I pull the traitor into the house and conjure ropes to bind him so tightly he really can't move an inch of his limbs. The others come over from the classroom.

"Let's hope he was alone..." I say.

"Could be, you know, it didn't exactly look like he was with someone. And the map shows no one else around the wards and the house," Ginny says.

"Still, we'll keep on watching it. We will have to wait for an answer from Hogwarts. Anana takes a while for this trip. Several hours at least, so it will be morning at best."

We decide that Remus and six of the teens go and sleep half the night while I watch with five of the kids. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Ernie stay with me while the others go and sleep. We take up residence in the classroom, where we can keep Wormtail out in the open. Hermione goes to get some of the games and we play several rounds. We keep a keen eye on the map and calm down when no other Death Eater shows up around the wards.

After three hours the stunner wears off. Harry has warned us what he's capable of with that silver hand of his, so we have bound his elbows together on his back, even if he can cut through the ropes around his hands he can't do much, as he's chained around the elbows and chained to the railing of the stairs on one side and to several other points in the room. I see when he wakes up and looks around confused. He sees me and blanches. Oh, how I longed for this sweet, sweet moment!

Harry, Ron and Hermione have been beaming ever since we've stunned Wormtail. Harry is on his feet the moment Wormtail seems to have regained consciousness.

"So, you're back again, Wormtail! But this time you won't get away. No full moon tonight. No need to transport you between someone with a broken leg and a werewolf who has to transform. We've already sent the news of your capture to Hogwarts you know. This time you won't escape!"

Wormtail seems to think the best policy is to keep his mouth shut. I'm not in the mood to descend on him, I let the teens work their magic. Ron and Hermione both don't hold back with their amount of venom.

"We've grown a bit since the last time we saw you, Wormtail, you won't stand the point of a chance!" Hermione says coolly.

I'm glad we have shut down the large map and only use one of the small ones surreptitiously. Just in case he would be able to get away we don't want him to know that we've been able to charm a map here.

"You'll never win now! The Dark Lord is back and he'll take over! I'm on the winning side now! Again!" Wormtail finally shrieks.

"That won't help you though, will it?" Ron says with a laugh.

"You'll get some of the horror you made Sirius feel, you dirty rat!" Harry threatens.

"The Ministry won't be able to oversee that you are in league with Voldemort and that means they'll have to acknowledge he's back. No more hiding and gathering more forces, Wormtail, do you think your boss will be happy?" Hermione spits.

Wormtail seems to think that she perceives his position just right and pales. He looks dreadful as it is.

"Just disregard him, kids. Let's rather play on..." I say calmly and turn back to the game we've been playing.

They come back to the table, but of course we all watch Wormtail. I've already cast the hold Animagus spell on him, so he can't transform into the rat right now. He grinds his teeth, but we don't make it easier on him. Then the time comes to wake the others so we can get some sleep. Ernie takes over with the ones in the back of the house and Hermione goes to wake Remus. I'm a bit afraid of letting Remus stay with Wormtail, because of that dratted silver hand. So, when Remus comes down I tell him in German to do anything to stay away from Wormtail.

"I will, love. I don't want to get close to this monstrosity."

"Good. I'll leave you then. I hope I will get some sleep!"

"You will. I slept. Well even!"



Remus


I kiss Siri and he leaves reluctantly. Wormtail watches us and the loathing in his eyes is easy to see. Ron, Hermione, Harry, Ginny and Ernie leave and we don't even hold Ernie back who leaves in the wrong direction to be with Ginny.

Blaise, the twins, Justin, Mandy and Morag file in from the back of the house. We take over and play more of the games that lie on the table. We don't even acknowledge Wormtail, but after a while he tries to get to me.

"Remus, you can't let them take me!"

I don't react.

"Remus, I know you're too good to have me killed!"

"Ignore him," I tell the kids.

"You can't ignore me, Remus! Do they even know what company they enjoy? I don't think they would like to know! You don't belong here, Remus, you have to help me. If you help me out, then the Dark Lord will surely be very thankful..."

"I'm afraid that you are quite delusional about your status to your precious boss, Wormtail! He'll only be glad to be rid of you..." I finally shoot back.

"He can't afford to lose me, I know too many of his secrets!" he cries.

"Shut up, Wormtail, I won't listen," I tell him.

"You kids should know that you share your house with a monster! He's a bloody werewolf, he'll kill you all if he can!" Wormtail finally cries.

I'm not even reacting. But the reaction from my students really pleases me. They all jump up at once and get closer to him. Then Blaise tells him:

"You are nothing but a stinking traitorous rat, Pettigrew! We know he's a werewolf. And do you know how much we care? Not THAT much! He would never be such a piece of crap as you are. He'd never betray his friends. He'd never creep in the dirt in front of a master like you do."

And Padma adds:

"I don't know how you even earned his friendship ever when you went to school, Pettigrew, because then you'd never betray his secret like you just did. You must be a really ugly coward to be able to do this. We've heard all the stories, we know that Remus, Sirius and James looked at you as a friend and pulled you along. You have THEM to thank for your Animagus form, you must have had THEM to thank for even passing school and you gave your thanks in such a lousy form."

"If you ever, ever utter another word against Remus until you're out of here, I will forget the order not to curse you! He's the kindest and friendliest person on this planet, he would never willingly hurt anyone and he's certainly never hurt you! You are scum, Pettigrew! Not even worth being looked at. You utter one more word and I will silence you!" Parvati hisses.

I call them all back and tell them that if he gets too loudmouthed we'll just stun him again. That shuts him up for quite a while. Then he tries again, but we disregard him. I keep my eyes trained on the map occasionally, but all is still clear. Then I see Albus apparating as close to the house as he can get. He has three Order members with him, Tonks, Bill Weasley and Kingsley Shacklebolt. I sigh with relief.

"We're getting help now," I tell the kids in German.

"Oh, good. Who's it?" asks Padma.

"The headmaster with three members of the Order of the Phoenix. They'll be here soon."

Half an hour later the house starts to bustle with activity. Dumbledore, Tonks, Bill and Kingsley enter the house and all stare at Pettigrew, some of them in horror of finding him alive and Albus with delight.

"Good morning, everyone! This was really a very nice information you sent me, Remus! I'm most pleased. Kingsley will be, too!"

"I'm sure you are, Kingsley! Great to see you all."

I introduce my students and then go and call Sirius down. He's with us in a moment and greets the others with a huge smile. Tonks embraces him and tells him how happy she is that his name should be cleared.

"We'll have to get him to the Ministry and I'll have to get pictures of him to the Daily Prophet immediately. I'll call the Minister tomorrow and tell him that on my search for Sirius I've rather found someone else who might be able to tell us some interesting stuff. - You'll be able to show yourself in public again soon, Sirius!" Shacklebolt says.

"I hope so. I really like it here, but to be here in a more official function would be nice, too!"

"I quite agree with you. But first let's stun this filth here and get him back to London. You'll hear from us."

Sirius has tears in his eyes. Tonks looks around and says:

"What's this here? Looks like a classroom?"

"That's what it is, Tonks. It's for the kids here. They've all had reasons to be out of harm's way for a while. So we're teaching them here."

"Wow! How do you guys like that?"

"It's great!" says Mandy.

"Yeah, we have loads of fun!" Ernie confirms.

"Fine! I'm to stay with you for a couple of days, to help keep watch. I've taken off at the office. I'm an Auror."

"Well, then we should give you one of the spare rooms, Tonks," I say.

We watch as Wormtail gets stunned again and then Bill and Kingsley take him away. Albus leaves with them. I sigh in relief. I could almost kiss Wormtail for making it so easy for us. Then I call Dobby and Winky and order a feast for the next day. Nothing below a really good party can be tolerated on this day!

The kids are happy to hear that and already start decorating the kitchen. I take Tonks over there and she smiles at the flags of the Hogwarts houses. We've never taken them down and they still adorn the wall behind the bench around the table.

"This looks neat in here! As far as an exile goes, this looks like a great one!"

"I can only agree, dear cousin," says Sirius, who is all smiles and beaming.

"Tonks, you can have my room, I'll just share with Harry for a few nights," Hermione says.

Harry blushes.

"Oh, is there something I should know?" Sirius asks and looks stern.

But he can't hide his grin for more than ten seconds. Harry and Hermione grin, too.

"Not yet," Hermione says.

"Do you think we'll have to inform you by formal announcement in a letter?" Harry asks cheekily.

"No thanks. Your snogging sessions are informative enough," Sirius says.

"We can't be any worse than the two of you," Hermione retorts, pointing at Siri and I.

I think I hear Tonks giggle. I think, Tonks deserves a stern look. And I think she doesn't even mind. She's clearly amused.



Tonks


They seem to have a fairly merry household here. And it looks like Sirius and Remus have found together again, how nice. Interesting - that girl looks like she's Harry's girlfriend and that they are quite comfortable together if she wants to leave her room to me. Well, I'm fine with that, anything to get a couple happy. The kids seem to be very content here. Well, I think I would be, if I'd have the luck to have two teachers like that.

"I'm Hermione, may I show you your room now?" the girl asks me.

"Pleased to meet you, Hermione. Thank you! But if there's another way I don't want to shut you out of your room..."

"It's okay. Believe me, I gladly take the excuse," she says while we're walking up the staircase.

I grin.

"So you need to push your boyfriend a little or what?"

"Fifteen year old boys are so thick! He's a sweetheart, but he needs to be pushed a little now and then, not only in all things love... but he'll grow up."

"You might want to take care. Potters usually fall once - and hard..."

"Not that I'd mind. Though I have ambition for a professional career. I don't know what yet, but I know that I'll have my choice of possibilities."

We arrive on the top floor. On the way she shows me the bathroom, then she opens the door to a really lovely room. Then she grabs a few clothes and says:

"Well, if I need something I'll allow myself to come and get it if you don't mind."

"Not at all, Hermione! Thank you very much. This is a lovely room."

"Just wait until you see the view. In case it's a clear day for once. It's breathtaking. Have you ever been in Switzerland?"

"Nope, never. Do I see the mountains?"

"Oh yes, you do see the mountains. - Well, get settled, then just come down. We're either in the kitchen or over in our common room. That's on the top floor above the classroom."

"Thanks, I'll find you guys."

I put my overnight bag down and look out of the window. It's still almost dark, the dawn just breaking in. I take my wand and go down to meet them all again. Remus and Sirius are in the kitchen and enjoy their early breakfast. They tell me to sit at the head of the table.

"We have our fixed seats. You're taking the one available free seat, Tonks," Sirius tells me.

"I see. - So, how do you like teaching, Sirius?"

"It's still a very strange feeling, Tonks. But I like what I do. I don't know if I'm any good, but they at least manage the transfigurations I teach them and they seem to grasp the theory, so maybe I'm not such a bad teacher. I'm also teaching them Potions and Arithmancy."

"You have only one class, shouldn't be too draining..."

"Well, it is, actually. I can't imagine having so many classes as in Hogwarts. The way we have it here is great though. We each have two full days of classes and the remaining day is usually something we do all together. Sort of the odd things. We know what they have to know for their OWLS and we teach them that. And some things beyond that..." he says.

I've never seen him so sincere. When I mention it I get a rueful smile.

"I could be as careless as I wanted with myself, Tonks, but there's no way I'm going to be that for them. They depend on my serenity, so I'm pulling myself together."

"Wow, Sirius. That's commitment! - By the way, how did you know Wormtail was sneaking around?"

"Ginny saw him at the railway station in Bern yesterday. He followed them on the train, but he couldn't detect Ginny anymore and left it, but he somehow must have fooled the kids and found his way, because a few hours later he showed up on our map. We've made a map of the house and the surrounding, which we charmed to show us people and animals crawling around."

"Great! Like the Marauder's Map?"

"Similar. It's a bit more sophisticated. Shows Death Eaters in red, normal people in black, animals with names in blue and Animagi when in their Animagus form in blue as well, but with their full name."

"That's really sophisticated. Good for you, now we have Wormtail, they're going to drop some Veritaserum inside of him for sure..."

"It would be too good to be able to return home free."

"Not that you're particularly hot for your home, I suppose..." I say sardonically.

"No, of course not. This house here is more like it."

After the breakfast I decide to make a round around the premises. Sirius gets dressed into a warm cloak and comes with me. We check on the area, find no wards breached and nothing wrong, so we get back into the house.



Parvati


After the night's excitement we get a nice lazy Sunday. No one does much, I go and take a nap in my room, some of the others do the same. Then we get a big early dinner, which reminds us all of Hogwarts. Actually I don't miss the draughty castle at all, it's really much nicer here in this cosy house with our lovely big and bright classroom. We don't have the gloom of all the candles here. And we don't have a raging monster as a Potions teacher.

I've written Mum and Dad a letter and sent it off with Morgana. Now it's time to go to bed, as we have classes again tomorrow and life will turn back to normal.

While I slip under the duvet I muse about last night's events. If I have kept any doubts about Sirius' innocence they are now certainly gone after I saw that man. Gosh, what a piece of dung! And he's actually just given away Remus' secret of being a werewolf. Luckily we've known about it, it would have simply been awful for Remus otherwise.



Harry


I can't get over what Hermione did. Dear me, she's determined to share the bed with me. Does this mean she really wants to be with me for good? I know I want her around for good. I may be clumsy, but I know that I'm in love. I'm not that much of a prat not to recognise it. I'm more of a prat in telling her. Or not telling her rather. There she is. Gosh, she's lovely. I wear nothing but a pair of pyjama bottoms and a thin t-shirt, she has put on a thin and long t-shirt.

"Which side do you want?" I ask her.

"Never mind which one, Harry, as long as I can cuddle up with you!" she says.

"You really want that?" I ask.

"Of course I do! I told you I'd look up the necessary spells or potions. And I did."

"I'm not sure I'm ready for that, Hermione. Give me time, please."

"Harry, if you can say you're not ready we'll wait until you are. I just want to let you know that I did what was necessary and if we need contraception we'll have it."

"Good. I'm glad, Hermione, because I love you, but I've got to come to terms with touching you and being touched first, you know."

We climb into the bed and she crawls next to me, taking me into her arms, then she kisses me and admits:

"You know, that's not a problem. Usually it's the girls who have to hold back. But let's touch as much and as often as we can, you'll get the 'go ahead' from your body... you're way too underfed with human touch, love, it's time you get used to it!"

I know that! And that's why it still scares me, but her hands on my chest make me shudder and in no time I can feel my nipples like I've never felt them before. We kiss and then she cuddles up and I pull her close.

Then I know nothing until I wake up. Not even the faintest bit of a nightmare, just warmth and happiness and when I finally pry my eyes open I remember. Hermione has spent the night with me. I'm only too happy that we don't have to get up right away as it's Sunday morning. So I can just look at her sleeping. It's still dark, but we haven't pulled the curtains closed, so I can see her in the dim light.

I must have drifted off to sleep again, because when I open my eyes the next time the sun is up and Hermione looks at me. She smiles. I smile back, pull her down and kiss her. She melts into the kiss and kisses me right back. The little butterflies in my stomach start to flutter, at least two thousand of them at once! And then something else stirs and I think that my pyjama pants feel strangely tight all of a sudden. Especially when she guides my hand under her nightshirt, which is really only an overlong t-shirt. I notice that she wears nothing underneath. Then she whispers into my ear:

"You know, lovers should really wear nothing but their skin and maybe a touch of perfume..."

"Are we lovers?" I ask her.

"Soon, Harry, soon! Believe me. And trust your body."

To emphasise this she brushes over my lower abdomen and my crotch. Wow! Now there's a good feeling. Maybe she's right and we ought to give this a try after all.



Sirius


I love nothing as much as I love waking up next to Remus. It's really the best feeling in the world and I hope I'll never ever have to miss it again. I'm usually the first to wake up and it gives me the chance to watch my love as he's still asleep. He must be the most lovable and innocent man on this globe when he's asleep. His face shows not one of the lines he still shows during the day. He's relaxed, usually on his side, the knee of his lower leg pulled up a bit and the upper leg stretched out. Sometimes he's all over me, pressing tightly along my body with his upper leg swung over me.

He's damn sexy. Greying hair? Who cares! His hair's shoulder length and it's still that light brown with a touch of gold. I love his eyebrows and lashes. They're very light in colour and the lashes are long. He's got those beautiful longish ears, not big, but with an elegant curve. His face is rather narrow with an aristocratic nose and finely swung lips. They're just right, not too thin, not thick. I know there's two rows of well kept teeth under them, with just slightly longer canine teeth. They're nothing compared to his wolf teeth of course. His chin is softly modelled, not too pointed. I lightly start to kiss his eyelids, over his cheekbone, nibble on the outer edge of his ear and earlobe, then move along his jaw to his lips. By the time I get there his eyes flutter open and he smiles. I wake him up and he smiles!

"Wonderful lover of mine," I murmur.

He stretches. Then he pulls me closer and leans in to return my kiss. And for the next hour or so we don't care for anyone around us.

I re-enter the world of the conscious people at about half past nine. Remus still resides on top of me and smiles. He looks about as happy as I feel. We kiss once more and then he says:

"Well, time to get up, I suppose. Tonks will start to wonder."

"Oh let her wonder! There's enough people to start breakfast, doesn't have to be us!" I protest.

But he's getting up slowly and I follow. We pick up our clothes and put on our dressing gowns, then we go downstairs to take a shower and get dressed. The bathroom is clear and we take our time for the shower.

When we finally sit down at the breakfast table, Tonks is there already and pushes the Daily Prophet under my nose. Death Eater arrested - Identification unsure, but looks like Peter Pettigrew, I read. Oh dear. The article tells the story a bit twisted, but basically correct:

"A Death Eater has been arrested while attempting to break into a Safe House for some Hogwarts students at an undisclosed location. A teacher and students have stunned the Death Eater who seems to be Peter Pettigrew. Magical citizens who have lived through Voldemort War in the late Seventies will remember Peter Pettigrew to have been allegedly killed in the London street incidence of November 1st 1981, when Sirius Black was supposed to have murdered Pettigrew and twelve Muggles with one curse. It seems that this case will now have to be unrolled again and investigated.

This reporter has to ask several questions regarding that incident. The very first has to be if this Death Eater is the same Peter Pettigrew. Especially considered the fact, that Peter Pettigrew was supposed to be a firm follower of the Light. The next question is of course, whether Sirius Black really was a Death Eater himself, after having supported the Light for several years. It seems that no one in his closer surrounding could ever understand why he had been working for the Dark Lord in the first place and finally settled on the fact that the Black family has a certain reputation of being rather dark. Had he been a follower of You-Know-Who? And finally the most important question must be how did Pettigrew survive, if it is indeed the same Peter Pettigrew who was supposed to have been killed?

Investigations are starting, has been the sole comment from the Ministry of Magic."

"Not very informative," I remark and hand Tonks the paper back.

"No, but the Ministry will probably remain tight-lipped for a while. We can only hope that Dumbledore will be close by in the investigations. Kingsley certainly will be, since he's heading the search Aurors who are after you," Tonks says.

"I only hope, that Dumbledore finally opens up his mouth a bit. He's been keeping everyone in the dark long enough. I mean we're all willing to fight Voldemort, but if he continues to hold back information that might help us..." Harry says and trails off.

I have to nod. It's true, we've not been informed very well. Remus probably thinks the same, but he won't accept disrespect of Dumbledore, so he looks at Harry darkly.

"I don't want to show disrespect, but what he does seems counterproductive in my eyes. He thinks I'll be important to fight the thing, but he won't really go to lengths as to show me how and when. It's infuriating."

"I quite understand your feelings, Harry, but I'm sure Albus wants you all to stick to what your first duty is at the moment: learning. You're by no means a fully trained wizard yet and with all that you've achieved against Voldemort there was always an incredible amount of luck involved."

"That's true," Harry concedes.

"So you have to learn a lot more and that's one of the reasons we're all here. To give us all time to recuperate for that fight. Siri needs it as much as you do."

"But why can't he tell me that?"

"Because it's obvious," Remus reasons.

We spend the day mostly inside, as the weather is not of the best. In the early afternoon Anana arrives with a message from Dumbledore, that we were to receive an Auror for the next few weeks to guard our house. He reassures me that only Aurors will be used who have been informed of my innocence and who believe it. Kingsley is to handpick them. Tonks is told to stay at our place for a week and to watch the map during night shifts. We decide to take some of the guard duty and the students immediately accept a four hour duty in the evening. They will be doing their homework setting a table in front of the map, always two of them.

Harry and Hermione take the first shift. Ginny and Ernie follow on Monday, Blaise and Justin take over Tuesday, the Patil twins do it on Wednesday, Mandy, Ron and Morag watch on Thursday evening, then Remus and I take over Friday. Tonks relieves them at eleven in the evening and stays there until early in the morning.



Tonks


It's remarkably easy with this map. The map is spying around the warded area so well that I can see everyone who moves around, but luckily there's never a Death Eater. The longer I stay here the more I'm convinced that Pettigrew's was a rogue action to try and catch someone out of the group. It would have been easy to lure Harry anywhere if there was someone he loved being caught. Luckily the plan hasn't worked.

We get more information about the Ministry investigation. Of course Fudge still tries to deny Voldemort is back, but once they have Pettigrew under Veritaserum he surely must be believed. Hopefully it will be possible to make the investigators believe that the Dark Mark on his forearm is indeed a proof that he's a Death Eater.

On Wednesday we get another owl from Dumbledore telling us that the important questions had been asked Pettigrew about two dozen times and that he of course stated the right answers under the Veritaserum. According to Dumbledore Fudge went as far as ordering a triple dose of the truth serum before he believed what he heard.

Friday morning I'm tired from my watch, but I decide to stay on to watch how Siri manages as a teacher. I come back from having some breakfast and take a seat close to the map on the wall to watch. The students take their seats. From the way their school materials lie on the tables I suppose that they sit at the same place every day. Sirius comes in and says:

"Well, we'll continue with what we started last Friday. As you know by now, the best results in transfigurations are achieved with a very lively fantasy. You need to have the image of what you want to get in your head. That's what makes it possible to actually transfigure something small into something entirely different. What do you think is the most difficult part in transfiguring a small object into a larger and completely different one?"

Hermione, Harry, Blaise, both of the twins and Ginny have their arms in the air immediately. Sirius picks Ginny to reply:

"I think it's the mass. Like when you used those pebbles to make furniture. You had only the tiny bit of stone, but you produced a large amount of mass."

"Very good, Ginny, that's five points for Gryffindor. And what else?"

This time he picks Blaise.

"The material itself. You had a stone pebble and you made wood or fabric out of it."

"Very good again, Blaise, take five points for Slytherin. Anything else? Parvati!"

"Colour and form."

"That's right again. Another five points for Gryffindor. Now we have several points to reflect and to keep in our minds while speaking the incantations for the actual transfiguration. How do we decide on the correct spells for the different aspects?"

"We can decide ad hoc or we can use pre-defined spells for more regular transfigurations," Hermione says.

Sirius casually works his students closer to the actual exercising of such transfigurations. I remember how Minerva McGonagall used to lecture and think that these kids are damn lucky to have Sirius as a teacher. He seems quite sure of what he does and looks at ease standing in front of eleven students. I catch myself following the lesson with the same interest as he gets from the students and when he notices he asks me one of his questions. And I grin and have to actually search for the answer in my brain. I'm so far beyond the stage of using theory in transfiguration I don't know the answer. He grins and tells the kids:

"You see, you're closer to it than Tonks. She's actually so good at it by now that she doesn't need to decide what kind of incantation she'll need to do a successful transfiguration, she just does it. You will get there one day. Most people forget a lot of what they learn in theory and most people are unable to transfigure something inanimate into something animate by the time they're out of school for more than a year. So - let's start practicing. You get a bunch of small items and you try to make anything larger out of it. The only thing not allowed is something closely related to whatever object I give you. In other words, if I give you a pebble you're not to make a larger stone out of it or just giving it another colour. You're to make something as different as a book or a quill out of it. Okay? Get going then. First one to get a significant difference gets 20 points."

He walks around and helps them with ideas and spells. Hermione is the only one who gets some change in her feather. It has become a broom. Sirius gives her the 20 points, but remarks:

"Actually, that was unfair to the rest of the class, I should give those 20 points to the second one who achieves it. It was predictable without a crystal ball or tea leaves, that Hermione would be the first. So there's a second chance, people!"

The kids all snicker to that and I laugh. I know he never liked Divination much. He is, after all, really a product of McGonagall's teaching. He's rarely as reasonable, but he definitely has the same sharp intellect and sense of the reality.

After a double period of Transfiguration they continue with Arithmancy, another double lesson. I'm leaving to go and take a nap, then I return for lunch and then I want to watch them doing Potions. Again Sirius has no problems with lecturing. He does it the same way he's worked in Transfigurations in the morning, working through the theory by asking them questions. After twenty minutes they are set to work on the day's potion. Sirius lets down a white board on which he sends the recipe for the potion with his wand. A pen of some sort writes the text on the board. The students copy it, then vanish out of the classroom. Sirius turns to me and grins.

"So, how do you enjoy watching me teach, dear cousin?"

I have to grin.

"Looks like you do this well, Sirius. Where are they?"

"Oh, just getting the supplies from our store. It's down in the cellar below the kitchen. They'll be right back."

"Do you like teaching?"

"I was a bit insecure in the beginning, but I'm beginning to really like it, yes. I never knew I could do it. Remus helps me a lot of course."

"Kind sweet soul that he is," I say with a grin.