Our Little One

.~*~.Our little one. ~*~.

Chapter Twenty

Cute and Fluffy

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This part of the chapter is not from any particular first-person POV.

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The next day it was the turn for Sirius's questioning. The Animagus walked to his place, looking self-confident, then locked his eyes at his husband, waiting for him to start the questioning.

"Your full name, age, and current working position?" Severus asked calmly.

"Sirius Julian Black, forty-three, the secondary superior of the Werewolf Department of the Ministry of Magic."

"Is there any special reason why you work in the Werewolf Department?"

"Well, my best friend, Remus Malfoy, is a werewolf," Sirius replied levelly. "I want to do my best to help him and his kind and make their life easier than it previously was with all the restrictions the Ministry had forced upon them."

"What are your ties to the Malfoy family?"

"Well, as I just said, Remus Malfoy is my best friend, and has been since we were schoolboys. Draco Malfoy is my husband's nephew, and Lucius Malfoy is my husband's ex-brother-in-law and best friend, as well as my own personal friend. Plus, Draco Malfoy's fiancé Harry Potter is my godson and adopted son."

"How well do you know Olivia Malfoy?"

"I've met her in several occasions. She's also spent some time in our house."

"Really? And why did she do that?" asked Weasley, trying to get the lead of the questioning to their side. Apparently he assumed that the Malfoys had been fighting and Olivia had needed asulym. Well, he was right about that, but they would certainly not let him know that unless he asked it directly. Not even working for the greater good could get anyone past the magical bindings that prevented the witness from saying an outright lie, but leaving something untold was not impossible. It was not Veritaserum, after all.

"It's kind of become a tradition in our group of friends to plan any weddings in the Black Manor, which is our home," Sirius said calmly. "Our own wedding was planned there, as was the Malfoys'. So, when my adopted son and Draco Malfoy started to plan their wedding, they came to stay in the Black Manor, and Olivia came along with them to spend some time with us."

"You have spent the period of twelve years in Azkaban, from 1981 to 1993. Why were you imprisoned?"

"I was accused of betraying the Potters to the Dark Lord, as well as killing Peter Pettigrew and several Muggles," Sirius said. "Later I was proved innocent to all those crimes."

"You also spent later a year in Azkaban, October 1998 through October 1999. What was the reason for this?" Mr. Lyncay asked then.

"I am an Animagus," Sirius replied calmly. "By that time, I was an unregistered one."

"Really? And what is your form?"

Sirius grinned a bit. "I'm a Grim," he said.

The wizard raised his eyebrows. "A Grim?" he echoed. "Rather unusual form for an Animagus, I might say. When did you become an Animagus, and how long did it take from you?"

"It took me three years to complete the transformation," the Animagus replied without batting an eyelid. "I completed it at the age of fifteen."

"Three years? And completed it when you were fifteen?" the official echoed. "Very well. I suppose you are aware of the fact that many extremely strong wizards have tried to complete the Animagus transformation without ever being successful?"

"Yes, I'm aware of that."

"So how comes you did this -- alone, even?"

"For one thing, I wasn't alone," Sirius corrected him. "Also two of my friends, James Potter and Peter Pettigrew, studied and completed the transformation. And as of how we succeeded, well, we had a rather good motivation."

"Oh? And what was that?" Robert asked, determined to get the questioning back to his and Severus's lead.

"We wanted to help our friend." Sirius was quiet for a moment, and he glanced at Remus before continuing, "In the middle of our second year in Hogwarts we, James, Peter, and I, discovered that our dormmate, Remus Lupin, was a werewolf. Because the Wolfsbane Potion wasn't invented until several years later, he had to be locked in the Shrieking Shack for every full moon. In absence of human prey, the wolf clawed and bit himself. These self-inflicted wounds, additional to the pain and wounds of the actual transformation, made every full moon a nightmare to our friend.

"And the werewolf only goes for human prey. So, we decided to become Animagi in order to be with Remus. Once we completed the trick, we could stay with Remus every full moon. His wolf side didn't want to attack us when we were animals. Because we, too, were humans in an animal form, our presence made him able to maintain a bit of his humanity, and he could fight down the wolf's urge to hurt something - in this case, himself, the nearest to a human there was."

"Do you still spend the full moons together with him?" Severus asked, acting curious very well. If they hadn't known better, the Malfoys could have sworn that he didn't know a thing about the whole topic.

"Whenever I'm able to, yes, I'm present during the transformation, when the Wolfsbane Potion's effects can momentarily be weaker than during the wolf-period."

"So there is a danger during the transformation?" Weasley asked quickly, looking all too smug for his own good.

"No, absolutely not. The only way anybody might hurt themselves is standing next to him when he transforms, when they could accidentally be hurt by his forming claws. What I mean is that the pain-killing part of the Wolfsbane isn't always working on the full force, and he can also lose his awareness of his body -- the wolf doesn't attack, however. My presence merely makes the pain more bearable and makes him able to maintain his consciousness through the transformation."

"So he is also safe for Olivia Malfoy to be around?" Severus asked swiftly.

"Of course he is!" exclaimed Sirius. "Remus would never cut a hair from the girl's head. He considers Olivia his own child, a cub if we are to say so -- and a werewolf would never harm its cub any more than it would attack its mate, dosed with the Wolfsbane Potion or not."

"Has Olivia ever seemed to be uncomfortable with the werewolf notion?" Mister Lyncay cut in.

"Absolutely not. I've seen her petting Moony's fur and feeding him chocolate."

"Moony?" echoed Mr. Lyncay. "What you mean?"

"Moony is the name we usually use for Remus's wolf form," Sirius explained ever so patiently. "It's a remnant from our younger days, when we could only be in the wolf's company as animals. All our animal forms had a special nickname, so it seemed natural to give Remus's wolf side one as well."

"I see." Mr. Lyncay wrote something down. "Do you think Olivia Malfoy is happy in her current family?"

"Definitely. Remus and Lucius love her, and she loves them. Even a blind man would see that there's no better place for her than the one where she is right now."

Not much else was said during the questioning, and definitely nothing important. Therefore, it was rather soon that the questioning was called ended. A smile graced Severus's lips as he collected his parchments to go to join his friends and family.

They'd won this time, too.

*

"Where are we going?" asked Olivia curiously as she walked behind Lucius down the Diagon Alley. The eldest of Malfoys had some business there, and he had taken Olivia with him, giving Remus a strong recommendation to rest. The werewolf had tried to protest at first, saying that he would come with them or maybe stay home with Olivia, but at last his post-full moon exhaustion that hadn't really ended yet had sunk in. Therefore, the two other occupants of the Malfoy Manor had left him sleeping.

"This is our destination--the Magical Menagerie," Lucius said, smirking slightly. "It is by far the most popular magical pet shop in the country -- as well as a part of Malfoy Industries, of course."

"Really?" asked Olivia, her eyes shining with excitement.

"Really," the blond replied, nodding. "Come on. We're here to check the business."

"Good evening, Lord Malfoy, Young Lady Malfoy," the shopkeeper said with an exaggerrated bow as they stepped in. "I'm honoured to have you here in my tiny and worthless shop."

"One word more, and I'm going to fire you," said Lucius levelly. "So stop groveling and tell me whether you have anything new around here."

"Of course, Lord Malfoy, of course," the other man said hastily. "These arrived just this morning." He led them to a big cage in the corner of the shop.

The cage was swarming with some weird-looking creatures neither of the Malfoys had ever seen before. They were like squirrels with a snake's head -- a head that seemed to be much too big for the thin, long neck to carry. There were animals in every colour thre, even though their eyes were all the same vibrant yellow shade without exception.

"What exactly are these ridiculous creatures?" Lucius asked, mildly interested in the small animals.

"They are saroths, Lord Malfoy. A new magical species from India. Each animal only takes a liking on some certain kind of people, and will only pick a suitable master for themselves from among those people. Once they've made their pick, they are fiercely loyal to their owners."

"Well, they certainly look interesting," he said dryly. "But what about people who are not their owners? Are they aggressive?"

"Only if their owner is being threatened. Otherwise, they are surprisingly tolerant for magical creatures of their intelligence. In fact," the shopkeeper added then with a smirk, "they have an odd trait that might be of interest to you."

"Oh?" Lucius raised his eyebrows, glancing over his shoulder at Olivia, who was crouched in front of the cage. "And what is it, pray tell?"

"Saroths," the shopkeeper said, "like werewolves. Or, rather, they love them. Only their owners are more precious to saroths than any nearby werewolf."

"Really?" Without another word he turned towards Olivia. "Do you like those creatures, little one?"

"Well, they're cute," Olivia replied, smiling up at him. "And they seem rather kind to me."

"That they are, Young Lady Malfoy," the shopkeeper assured her. "If you want to let one pick you for their mistress, just put your hand into the cage."

"My hand into the cage?" Olivia paled. "Are you sure it's harmless? Sure they look kind, but those fangs also look pretty sharp." She eyed the fangs -- every creature had a pair of those, long enough to penetrate her palm.

"Do not worry, Young Lady Malfoy. They are perfectly harmless. No saroth will ever attack a human unless their owner is in danger."

"You'd better be very sure," Lucius said calmly. "I'm going to feed one of your fingers to them for every scratch Olivia gets to her hand."

The man paled, but still gestured Olivia to put her hand into the cage through the small lid on top of it. He seemed to be very sure of the saroths' harmlessness -- Lucius was indeed a man who would do what he threated.

Olivia finally dared to put her hand in to the cage. In an instant several saroths came to examine it. One by one, however, they left, until one jumped upwards and grasped her sleeve. As the tiny creature wrapped her tail around the Ciddle's wrist, the others gave up.

"She seems to like me," Olivia noted, smiling. She pulled her hand away from the cage, petting the tiny creature's head.

"That she does, Young Lady Malfoy," the shopkeeper said. "It looks like she has picked you for her mistress."

And so, Olivia departed from the store with a small creature of sky blue and dark blue sitting on her shoulder, pressing its head against her cheek in an affectionate gesture.

*

While Lucius and Olivia were on the Diagon Alley, Remus was dreaming of past. His dreams, however, were a lot more pleasant than Severus's had been a bit over a week earlier.

***

6th of July, 1993

*

Remus opened his eyes slowly. As he got them fully open, he noticed that he was looking right into a pair of warm, silver grey eyes.

"Lucius," the werewolf sighed happily. "So it wasn't just a dream."

"No, it wasn't," the blond confirmed. He reached out a hand, tracing Remus's cheek with light fingertips. "I am here, Remus, with you... And I don't plan to leave you this time."

"Good," Remus sighed, then snuggled up to his newly-returned lover. He was still a bit tired, so he pressed himself against Lucius's side and closed his eyes again.

Soon the warmth radiating from the other man's body and the steady hand softly tracing circles to his back lulled him back to sleep.

*

Some time later Remus again woke up. This time, however, he noticed that his side was empty. A small sigh escaped his lips as he sat up in the bed, trying to force himself to get up and dress himself.

'It was not a dream,' he told himself firmly. Well, of course he knew it hadn't been a dream -- he could still feel Lucius's scent on the pillow and the sheets, even his warmth radiating from the cooling bed. But he would have wanted to finally wake up with Lucius still lying by his side.

What else had he expected, anyway? Lucius had a family, and business to attend to. He wasn't just a poor, jobless werewolf like Remus himself was. He hardly could expect the blond to stay for the day.

Although he did hope that Lucius would come back later.

As soon as he opened the door to step out of his bedroom, however, a sweet scent assaulted his oversensitive nostrils. Instantly recognizing his favourite kind of tea, he headed towards the kitchen on a much better mood. He didn't dare to even imagine what he would do if it was only one of his so-called friends who'd decided to come for a visit.

But no, it was Lucius. Lucius, who stood there in all his Malfoy-ish glory, leaning against the counter with a cup of hot tea steaming in his hands. To his great joy Remus noticed that the cane had been abandoned, and that Lucius's posture was much more relaxed than usual.

"Good morning," the werewolf said with a warm smile. "Nice to see you haven't left yet."

"It's not polite to leave while the other is sleeping, I've been told," Lucius replied, raising an eyebrow in amusement. "I do fear I'll have to leave sooner or later, however," he then added with something as near to an apologizing tone as he only could manage. "Narcissa and Draco are probably already wondering why I haven't got back home, and if I don't show up around midday, they'll get worried."

"What, they haven't got used yet to your various affairs?" asked Remus jokingly as he made his way to the teapot. Although his tone and words were playful, however, he was strained to hear the answer. It might mean a lot.

"What affairs?" asked Lucius back calmly. "I'll let you know, my dear, that while Narcissa has had many affairs around, I have never had any."

"You saved yourself for me, eh?" Remus then said teasingly. "How sweet of you, Lucius."

"You're welcome," was the only response he got, accompanied by Lucius's raised eyebrow.

"I didn't think you could actually make tea," Remus mentioned then with a slight smile as he sipped his drink. "The house-elves must always make it for you, how did you learn it?"

The blond Slytherin raised an eyebrow again. "You honestly think that I could be a Potions Master without knowing how to brew decent tea?" he asked. "I'm very disappointed with you, Remus. You're the one who should know better, of all people!"

"Sorry," he said. "I must have forgotten some things during all these years." He didn't mean his words to come out as accusing as they did. However, to his great surprise, Lucius actually looked guilty for a fleeting moment instead of just shrugging it off.

"Anyway," Lucius said then, collecting back his usual well-controlled self. "As we don't have much time left before I'll have to leave... What would you say about using that time to our advantange as well as possible?"

"Sounds great to me." And with that and a small, soft smile, Remus stepped forward to kiss him right on the lips.

***

16th of June, 1996

*

With a simple flick of his wand, Lucius made the magical litter rose from the carriage. Remus, who lay rather comfortably on the litter, eyed his surroundings through half-closed eyelids. As he saw where they were, however, his eyes widened with surprise and shock.

"Yes, we are indeed in the Malfoy Manor," Lucius said, seeing his reaction. "Don't worry, though. I've got all silver objects transferred to the east wing, which is never used. You'll be perfectly safe here."

Remus was almost too exhausted to speak, so he didn't bother even trying, shaking his head slowly instead. The silver wasn't what shocked and worried him. No, it was the fact that Lucius had brought him to his home. Of course he'd known that Narcissa knew all about their relationship, but this... This just seemed more... personal.

And just then the woman he'd been thinking about rushed outside. "Oh, so you arrived at last," Narcissa said, smiling brightly. "Come in, will you. I'd like to introduce you to our other guest."

"Other guest?" echoed Remus wearily and warily. Of course the Malfoys trusted his guest, but he himself was untrustful. If Voldemort found out about his current condition and place, not only would he get slaughtered, but also Lucius and his family would suffer.

The man he saw upon being led on the litter to the master sitting room, however, was not a Death Eater. Instead he was a rather pleasant-looking man, with reddish brown hair and warm brown eyes. He was surveying them with curious eyes, a slight smile on his lips.

Narcissa immediately went to plant a light kiss on the man's temple. "Remus, this is Thomas Narcair, my lover of a year and a half now," she said brightly. "And Thomas, this is Remus Lupin, my husband's lover of three years if I'm not mistaken."

"Well, that must have been the most interesting introduction I've ever heard," muttered Lucius with a small smirk playing on his lips. "You know, Narcissa, not many women could introduce anybody as their 'husband's lover of three years' without batting an eyelid."

The woman shrugged. "Being married to a Malfoy teaches you many things," she replied levelly. "And the first one is: 'The best way to deal with a Malfoy is to offer a bargain or make a threat.' I will be civil to your lover as long as you're civil to mine."

"Sounds like we have a deal." Turning towards Remus, Lucius continued then, "We'd better get you to a bed for some rest now, what do you think?"

Remus smiled weakly and nodded. He couldn't even begin to imagine how he could be so exhausted, but he figured that it was just his wolf side healing him and eating up his energy.

As Lucius began to move the litter out of the room, the last thing Remus heard before drifting into a peaceful slumber was Narcissa's voice. "And remember, Lucius," the woman said, "absolutely nothing else but sleep in your bed right now. You would only hold back his recovery!"

***

Remus woke up as he heard sounds. They were whispers, he soon discovered as he woke up enough to comprehend what he was hearing.

"There's no need to whisper," he said quietly. "I woke up already."

"Oh!" exclaimed Olivia. "We didn't wake you up, did we?"

"No," he lied. Then he muttered, "How was your trip to the Menagerie, anyway?"

"Very good, actually," Lucius replied, smiling. "Olivia found herself a new pet."

"Look at her," Olivia said with a slight smile. "She's a saroth. I've named her Ssaratha."

Remus sat up to look at the creature, a bit wary. Not a few magical creatures had attacked him or tried to flee at the sight of him. Werewolves were not popular, not even among animals.

To his great surprise, however, the weird-looking creature on her adopted daughter's shoulder just eyed him curiously for a moment. Then she jumped, landing on his shoulder. Caressing his cheek slightly with her head, Ssaratha wrapped her fluffy tail behind his neck.

"So the shopkeeper was telling the truth," Olivia said, smiling brightly now. "They do like werewolves."

"Unbelievable," Remus muttered, raising his fingers to caress the little creature's soft fur. "Usually all magical creatures hate me. The more intelligent the animal is, the more surely it will keep away from me."

"Well, supposedly saroths are even more intelligent than the others," Lucius said, smirking.

"Mmm-hmm," was the only response he got.

*

"Your full name, age, and current working position?" Severus started in an official manner.

"Lucius Philippe Alasthor Malfoy, six days short of fifty, member of the Ministry Council."

"What department you represent in the Council?"

"The Potions Master Department."

"And what are your qualifications to represent this particular department?"

"I'm a fully qualified Potions Master and a member of the Guild, as well as one of the Potions Master's Council. Of course, the fact that my best friend Severus Black is the Lead Potions Master doesn't hurt, either."

"Is your position in the Potions Master's Council a result of favouritism, then?" asked Weasley quickly.

"No," replied Lucius firmly. "The members of the council are strictly the best Potions Masters in the country. Every year the Guild publishes new ranking lists, and the ten best of every country form the Council of that specific country."

"What do you think about the fact that your husband is a werewolf?" Mister Lyncay questioned him then. "And how is your life different because of this?"

Lucius met his gaze steadily. "That particular fact hardly affects our lives expect around the full moon," the blond man replied calmly. "I think of it as a disadvantage because it forces him to go through excruciating pain every month and to deal with the exhaustion and depression that always follow the transformation. My life would probably be very different if Remus wasn't a werewolf -- I wouldn't have to avoid having silver in our house, to worry about him every month, or to brew the Wolfsbane Potion. However, I knew what I was entitled to when I proposed to him, and even if his Lycanthropy has made my life different from what it otherwise would be, I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Your adopted daughter is a Ciddle. Does this reflect on your relationship with her?"

"Why should it?" asked Lucius. "We knew of her unability to use wand magic even before we adopted her. Of course I hope she would be able to use all kinds of magic, but she seems to be happy with the talents she has. Therefore, I love her no more or less for the fact that she's a Ciddle."

"But what about the Pureblood issue?" Weasley tried. "Malfoys are known to pay a lot of attention to the purity of blood."

"Correction: Malfoys were known to value it," the blond said calmly. "I couldn't care less of the purity or unpurity of her blood. As a Ciddle, she's a child of a Pureblood and a Squib, and thus she is considered equal to a Pureblood. My husband is a Halfblood. Not only I accept him for what he is, but I'd also like to note that if we had a biological child, their blood would be less pure than Olivia's."

"What do you know about Seeing?" asked Weasley then, taking a wholly different turn in the questioning.

Lucius shrugged. "Not much," he answered quite truthfully. "Many things can trigger a vision. Usually it's an object or a place that has a memory or memories attached to it. Seers' memories cause visions more often than other people's, and those visions are also stronger. Once a person has fallen into a trance, they cannot be woken up until the vision has ended, and only the Blocking Potion can keep a Seer or a Seeress from having a vision in the presece of a strong memory channel."

Weasley raised his eyebrows. "'Not much?'" he echoed. "That's more than most people know. What's there you don't know, then?"

"I don't know how the Seer's Guild tests a person's sensitivity to visions. I don't know how experienced Seers can tell whether somebody's Seeing nearby, where they are, are they a Seer or a Seeress, and how strong is the vision. I've no idea what it feels like to be in a trance, or why it's impossible to tear one's mind away from a vision. I only know things that a person without the gift of Seeing can."

"Then how does your daughter get any information about using her own gift?" asked Severus mildly.

Lucius resisted heroically the strong urge to roll his eyes towards the ceiling. "My best friend, Severus Black, who is a first-level Seer, answers any questions she has," he replied.

"Does your position as a Potions Master have anything to do with the fact that your adopted daughter Olivia is being trained in Potions?" Severus asked then.

"No. Olivia is being trained in Potions because she's got talents for it and because she likes it. Of course it pleases me that we share the same interests, but she could study anything else if she took a liking on it."

"Who is teaching Olivia, then?" Robert inquired. "Are you her tutor?"

"Well, at first I was," Lucius replied. "Now, I only advise her every so often. The majority of her tutoring is done by my best friend and former brother in-law, the forementioned Severus Black."

"What is your full opinion of said Severus Black?" Severus asked mildly.

Lucius shot him a glare. The other Slytherin had no right to ask that! Well, in fact he had, but... "He's stubborn as hell, snappish, extremely nasty and even cruel at times, mostly uncaring about other people's feelings, unsocial, ridiculously meticulous, and one of the most difficult personalities to deal with I've ever come to know, including Lord Voldemort --"

Now Weasley looked dumbstruck. "And you trust him to tutor your daughter in the use of potentially explosive or poisonous concoctions, leave alone visions that might cause insanity at worst?" he asked disbelievingly.

Lucius merely raised an eyebrow. "Had you not interrupted me, I could have mentioned that he's also one of the most intelligent people I've ever met, the best Potions Master I know of, humorous in his own twisted way, more strong-minded than anyone, extremely brave and cunning, the best friend anybody could hope to have, passionate in both his hate and love, loyal to death, and the nearest thing to a brother I have."

Now Severus was smirking broadly, but he didn't say anything. Instead, Mr. Lyncay did. "Do you really trust your daughter's life in the hands of such a varying man?"

"Of course," the blond said. "I would immediately trust him with the life of my husband, son, and anybody I call a friend. I would gladly put my own life in his hands without a second's hesitation. Why on Earth wouldn't I trust him with Olivia's life?"

"You took two of your children to the Potions Masters' meeting, and they lost their lives there. Can't it thus be stated that their death was partly your fault, and that you cannot properly tell what's safe for your children?" Weasley asked nastily.

Lucius paled a bit, but stayed otherwise calm. As the other members of his extended family stared at him firmly, wishing him strength, he started to speak.

"Because Mrs. Lorna Moonbeam, a Potions Mistress, lost her daughter Polly in this meeting where she'd brought her to, should she lose the custody over her son Matthew also? Since, regarding to your statement, this shows that she's unable to take care of children."

"But do you really love Olivia for who and what she is?" demanded Weasley. "Or do you just see her as a replacement for your lost children?"

The man had to turn his gaze away as he met Lucius's clam, unavoidable eyes. "Your question alone shows that you've never lost a child," the blond Potions Master said softly. "Pray you'll never lose one, either. I could get a hundred daughters and a hundred sons, and yet none of them could replace Joyce or Philip. I saw them grow up for the little time we had them, I watched them as they were swinging, I comforted them when they cried, I picked them up when they fell down. I loved them, believe it or not. How could Olivia ever replace them? I do love her, but I love her because of herself, not because she was reminding me of something that is lost. Just as nobody could replace Olivia, should I lose her," he then added very quietly.

A quick glance around their audience told Severus that the people were in their hands entirely. That was good. "Your honour," he said, "unless our opponents have some questions, I request that this testimony should end."

At this, the judge glanced at Weasley and Lyncay. Both shook their heads, realizing that trying to question Lucius any more would only turn everyone against them. And that was the least they wanted.

"Very well," the judge said. "This testimony shall end now. We'll continue this trial tomorrow, when we will hear Remus Malfoy."

*

"Ah, good," Severus said with a slight smirk as they arrived home and he saw something familiar on the table. "My Potions Master's Magazine has been brought already."

Sirius eyed the cover of the magazine with pretty little interest. "So it's the time for the ranking lists again, eh?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Great. Now we'll see just how many people you'll have to poison before you're the best in the world."

"Brat," huffed Severus, swinging an arm towards him. Sirius avoided the hit expertly and chuckled slightly as he went to the nearby shelf and started to look for the latest volume of his favourite Quidditch magazine. He wanted to read the interview of Harry the magazine had done. Meanwhile, his husband settled onto the couch and opened his own magazine, quickly flipping to the page where the listings began.

Suddenly, Severus's eyes widened. "Sirius," he said breathlessly. "Sirius, do come and see this."

"What now?" asked his husband, frowning. "Aren't you on the top ten list anymore?" While speaking, he walked to the couch, settling to stand behind it.

Severus simply pointed at the page. Sirius leant forward to read over his husband's shoulder, and his jaw dropped down.

"World Top Ten," read the title on the top of the page. Then, beneath it, there was the paragraph that had shocked and surprised them both so much. "The Best: Severus Miracol Snape Black, 43, the Lead Potions Master of Great Britain. A full member of both the Potions Master's Guild and the Alchemist's Guild. Became a Potions Master as the youngest one ever, as well as the only one who's ever passed the test on their first time. The inventor of the Wolfsbane Potion, the Non-Addictive Dreamless Sleep Potion, etc."

Sirius turned slowly to look at his husband, who was staring up at him, disbelief shining from his usually masked face.

"I don't believe it," muttered Severus, "this must be some kind of a joke..."

"Well, if it is not true," Sirius said, "this is the most enormous practical joke I've ever seen. But who would ever want to make a joke like this? I do believe they've finally realized your value, love."

"Well, Victor Bellon did die last November," the Slytherin said thoughtfully. "His Hippogriff finally got enough of him -- on that note, I don't want to see that Duckhead --"

"Buckbeak."

"Whatever it is, I don't want to see it anywhere near this house, or anywhere near you. And Shai No did fail his performance really badly in the Chinese Convention, and Monique Durót got herself killed when trying to fight a vampire -- she was a fine woman, really, I will miss her. Of course I also developed further some rather complicated recipes, and checked the new version of Skele-Gro for undesired side-effects and such, but still..."

"Oh, shut up," Sirius said happily. "You more than deserve this. And what is this?" he asked then, his eyes already darting further down the paragraph. "Inventor of 37 Alchemist's Guild -level potions? I don't know much about potions, Sev, but I do know that some of the best Potions Masters have used their whole lives trying to get the membership of the Guild, never managing to create even one potion that would gain them that title. You're simply a genius!"

"Hardly," Severus muttered. "And Simon Chalkwright has invented 42 Guild-level potions."

"But he's never passed his Potions Master's test, and none of those potions are even half as complicated as any of yours," said a cheerful voice behind them. Turning around, they saw the Malfoys standing in the doorway. "We just saw the top ten list," continued Lucius, who'd been the one to speak. "Congratulations, my friend. You've most certainly deserved this."

"Sirius has been telling me the same, and I didn't believe him, either," said Severus with a smirk. "And what about you?"

"Forty-ninth on the top fifty list. He was also the third on the British top ten," Olivia supplied helpfully.

At that, Sirius laughed. "And they have the gall to ask whether you're qualified enough to tutor Olivia," he said, grinning broadly.

Severus smirked again. "Indeed. Well, what else can you expect from a Gryffindor?"

"Hey, I resent that!" exclaimed Sirius. "At least we are brave and aren't afraid of some silly things!"

"Like?" asked Severus, raising an eyebrow. Although his tone was still light, the others froze. Severus's biggest fear besides having children were high places. That was a direct consequence of his unfortunate flight down the stairs. If Sirius didn't realize that and instead teased his husband about his acrophobia, it would do no good.

However, fortunately Sirius was more intelligent than they gave him credit for -- or he was just too used to living with Severus. Either way, he replied, "Well, I've never heard of a Gryffindor who was afraid of Muggles."

"Afraid of Muggles?" echoed Olivia, a broad grin on her face. "Isn't that a bit exaggerrated?"

"Maybe, but not much," the Animagus replied cheerfully. "These dear gentlemen will do about anything rather than dealing with anything Muggle. I know for certain that Severus once walked five miles rather than take a Muggle bus."

"Well, five miles is not an impossible distance for an adult man," Remus said, trying to suppress his grin. He didn't manage. After all, he had many years' experience about living with a tightly Pureblood Slytherin. Lucius maybe didn't mind Muggles, but he did try to avoid them and their devices as much as possible.

"When it's raining dogs and cats?" asked Sirius, bemused. "He was dripping wet after five steps. And of course he forced me to walk with him instead of taking the bus."

"Then why didn't you just use a waterproof spell?" Lucius asked, raising an eyebrow.

"For the same reason as of why we didn't simply Disapparate," Severus replied dryly. "We couldn't use any magic, as we'd just sabotaged a Death Eater raid. They had our magical imprints there, and if we'd used magic too near to that place, we'd been hunted down for sure."

"Meaning that he didn't want to trust wand magic," mentioned Sirius with a just as dry tone. "He didn't even allow me to call the Knight Bus -- although that was probably also because he's a Slytherin."

"The Knight Bus?" echoed Olivia interestedly. "What is it?"

"It's something you don't even need to know about," Lucius said calmly. "Just pray you'll never have to trust it for transportation."

"It's not a way of transportation," huffed Severus. "It's a means of torture."

However, the fact that the both Gryffindors were laughing didn't do any good to convince Olivia of the Knight Bus's inapproprierity.

*

"Your full name, age, and current working position?" Severus started Remus's questioning the usual way.

"Remus Jonathan Malfoy, forty-three, the Keeper of the Wolf's Staff."

"And what does the Keeper of the Wolf's Staff mean?"

"I'm the alpha male of all werewolves in the world," replied Remus levelly. "Any decision on a legal matter concerning werewolves has to be approved by me or the alpha of the continent or the specific country, depending on how large area it is going to have effect on. And of course, the alphas of the countries and continents are under my rulement as well."

"Is there another alpha here in our country, or are you also the alpha of United Kingdom?"

Remus raised his eyebrows. "Any country is full of alphas, as every pack has their own alpha pair," he said. "But no, I'm 'only' the alpha of the world. Mike Wassyer is the alpha male of United Kingdom. And of course, every area has its alpha female, too -- the world as well."

"Who is the alpha female of the world, then?"

"Ramona Mortense, from Brazil," replied Remus.

"The alpha male and female of any pack are usually a couple. Are you in a relationship with the said Ramona Mortensen?" Weasley asked snidely.

"If I may remind you, I am married, Mr. Weasley," Remus replied calmly. "I don't know what exactly your views on showing loyalty to one's spouse, but I am in fact faithful to my husband."

At this, some of the audience chuckled slightly as they saw Weasley's flush. Lucius smirked a bit, but his eyes did not leave Remus for a single moment.

"Very well." The redhead's eyes flashed. "Are you involved with Dark Arts?"

"Do please elaborate, Mister Weasley," Remus replied calmly. "As a werewolf, I am a Dark creature by nature, and while it cannot be held against me, it still qualifies as being involved with the Dark Arts."

This, of course, only irritated their opponent further. "Did you, or did you not, use the Unforgivable Curses in both Wars against the Dark Lord?" questioned Weasley sharply.

"Like you stated, we were in a war," replied Remus quite calmly. "Who didn't do anything we had to not only to win, but to survive? Has anybody blamed Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore for using the Killing Curse on Lord Voldemort?"

This silenced Weasley for a moment. Then, however, he was back to his usual self. "It is known that the ranking order of werewolves favours those who are skilled and powerful not only on mental level, but also in the Dark Arts. If you are as innocent as you claim to be, then how are you the alpha male of all werewolves in the world?"

Remus let out a long-suffering sigh. "What you obviously don't know about werewolves is that it's not quite that simple. Even though it is true that the alpha is almost always also the most powerful in the Dark Arts in their pack, you have to remember that werewolves are by nature so-called Dark creatures. Therefore, every werewolf is skilled in the Dark Arts, regardless of whether or not they have ever performed a single spell. My powers in Dark Arts are almost exactly the same as my other magical powers overall. However, as I indeed used those skills in the two Wars, my skills are even greater in the Dark Arts than in other magic. This does not, however, mean that I'd ever used the Dark Arts other than in the Wars to defend myself and my loved ones."

It took all self-control Sirius had not to raise an eyebrow. Being the secondary superior of the Werewolf Department -- his only superiors were the Minister, Mike Wassyer, and Remus -- he knew about all there was to a non-lycanthropic wizard to know about werewolves. Therefore, he also knew very well that even though all werewolves had a strong temptation for the Dark Arts, their natural powers in that area of magic were rarely greater than one third of their other natural powers, half at most. Nobody could prove that Remus was necessarily lying, as it varied with each werewolf. However, Sirius was absolutely sure that Remus had not been originally that powerful, not could he have gained such a skill by merely using the Dark Arts. No, he'd had to be systematically practicing them, his sole purpose to develop his skills and powers.

And how exactly could Remus say that? It was not just hiding information, it was an outright lie. The spells binding the witnesses should have prevented it!

He could question Remus about it later. Now, the trial had to go on.

"Fine." Before Weasley could go on, Severus had caught the control to himself. "What is your relationship with Olivia?"

"I consider her my daughter," the werewolf replied calmly, "and I love her as such. I would gladly give my life for her, not hesitating a moment."

This silenced their opponents for a moment. Robert, however, was immediately ready to jump at the occasion. "Would you ever hurt her, for any reason?" he asked.

Remus looked horrified at the mere thought -- what he was, of course. "I'd never intentionally hurt her," he replied firmly. "I would die rather than let any harm come to her. As the wolf in me considers her his cub, he wouldn't ever hurt her, either."

"Malfoys are known to be a family of long traditions and Pureblood preferences," Weasley cut in. "What would you say if Olivia one day came to you with a Muggleborn girl who's just come out of Hogwarts to the magical world, and presented this girl as her lover?"

Remus smiled calmly. "I would welcome both Olivia and her lover, as I trust her judgement. I'm homosexual myself, and I'm a Halfblood as well, so I don't see any problems with the situation you presented. It will only do good to avoid inbreeding."

Weasley continued hastily, like he was only trying to keep the questioning away from Severus's and Robert's hands, "Did Olivia know of your dead children before this trial?"

Remus raised an eyebrow quite expertly -- he was a Malfoy, after all. "We've told her everything about Philip, Joyce, and Kathleen," he replied levelly. "Whatever she has asked, we have answered. Not a thing of our history is a secret to her."

"Does she know of your times in prison, then?" Mister Lyncay asked quite casually.

"Yes. She does know that both I and Lucius have been in Azkaban, and that we were both found innocent to the crimes we were accused of. Olivia also knows of the side-effects these unreasoned imprisoments have caused, and has never showed any problems with them."

"Side-effects, like?" was Weasley's next sharp question.

"I myself have often nightmares." Remus drew a deep breath, then continued, "Other side-effects are memories -- or, rather, going too deep into them. Any scientifical study will prove that three months or more spent in Azkaban will cause a habit to drown so deeply into one's dark memories that getting out of them without an outsider's help is impossible. Unfortunately, my husband acquired just this habit -- or, rather curse."

"How do werewolves behave around their family? Both in human and wolf form," asked Severus next, something akin to a smile playing on his lips for a brief moment.

"Around their family?" Remus thought for some time. Then he said, "Any werewolf, be it in either form, would never harm their mate and cubs, or anybody they consider their cub. The Wolfsbane Potion has no effect to this trait; a werewolf wouldn't attack a close pack member even if the wolf was mad from rage. No matter how hostile a werewolf can otherwise be, and threatening even with the Wolfsbane Potion, they are like overgrown puppies around their closest pack. Instead of attacking, they will protect their mate and cubs with their own life if need be. It is not unheard of that a werewolf, be it a human or a wolf, has died to save their pack."

"Would you do that?" Robert asked mildly.

Remus yet again raised his eyebrow. "The higher a werewolf is on the ranking order, the stronger are the wolf's instincts. Even my human side would be immediately ready to give my life for any of my loved ones, and the wolf would be even more eager to do that."

Their opponents did try their best, but fortunately could not come up with anything too bad. In the end they left the courtroom relieved.

As soon as they got home and to the master sitting room, Remus fell into his favourite armchair. "I'm exhausted," he muttered.

"Then rest," said Lucius. "You truly do need rest, you look very pale. A little nap wouldn't do bad to you; I'll wake you up for the dinner."

"I'm not going to sleep," argued Remus. "I'm just going to let my eyes rest for a while..."

Of course, he did fall asleep in the armchair despite his best attempts to the opposite. From this peaceful slumber he was later woken by his husband's voice.

"Mmmm... Lucius?" Remus asked, blinking.

As soon as he saw that his husband was awake, Lucius put his cane-free hand on Remus's eyes. The werewolf exclaimed, surprised, but didn't try to take the hand off his face.

"This way," Lucius murmured into his ear, pulling him up from the chair and leading his way towards the corridor. "There's a surprise waiting for you."

Remus didn't argue, he just followed his husband, trusting him wholly. His keen werewolf hearing snatched different sounds - their breathing and heartbeats, the snapping of Lucius's cane on the floor, everything. In his mind he wondered what the surprise was, but didn't ask anything.

At last they stepped into some room. Remus could sense other people in there. Or, rather, other creatures, since he felt three obviously canine scents and only one human - that was Severus. One of the canines was familiar as well. "Sirius?" he asked. "Why're you in your Animagus form? And who are the other canines?"

"Try to find out," Lucius said. Remus could hear the grin in his voice.

"Well... they're wolves," he said, breathing the scent deep insife. "And a bit of humanity... Animagi?" When he heard an approving sound from Lucius, he continued, "This one," he said, pointing at the nearest wolf, "is Harry. And the other is..." He tried to sense the scent better. It was familiar as well. Draco, most likely. But there was also something else in there...

Then he realized it. "Oh, Merlin," he whispered, and then began laughing from the top of his lungs.

Lucius took his hand off. "What now?" he asked, sounding rather irritated. "What's so funny about this?"

"D-Draco," he laughed. "He is - he is - oh, no, she is -"

"The thing that your husband is trying to say," Sirius said with a grin, returning to his human form, "is the tiny detail that your son is actually a she-wolf in his animal form."

"That was not necessary," Draco said, turning back to his human form. A strong blush was colouring his usually so pale cheeks. "It's not like it was my fault!"

"Not your fault, no," Sirius said, struggling against laughter. "Just extremely rare and very, very funny when accompanied by the truth that people often call you effeminate."

"And what's wrong with being female?" asked Olivia from the other doorway of the room. A slight smile was playing on her lips. "Should I be offended by your reaction, brother dearest?"

"There's nothing wrong with being female, little one," Severus assured her, smirking. "I bet it's just that Draco is worried that Harry might not find him -- or her -- as attractive when he's in her wolf form."

"But shouldn't he be worried if Harry did find him attractive as a wolf?" asked the girl then innocently. This, of course, made the others laugh out loud. Draco, however, just blushed even further, then transformed into a wolf and followed his fiancé out of the room.

It took them some time to get over their amusement. Sirius was the last one to stop laughing, and Olivia was smiling, Severus and Lucius smirking broadly, and Remus grinning.

The werewolf then nodded slowly. "I can't understand just why you go through all that trouble," he said quietly. With a stern tone, he added, "I do hope they are registered at least. I don't want any new scandals right now, especially not either of them being put into Azkaban, leave alone both!"

"They're registered," Lucius assured. "I saw to that myself."

"By the way, Remus," Sirius said then, suddenly remembering something. "I meant to ask about this earlier. Nobody can say that you lied in the trial, but I know better. Your powers in the Dark Arts most certainly aren't only due to your werewolf status. As it is so, then how exactly did you acquire such powers?"

"Sirius," Remus said calmly, a soft smile gracing his lips, "I was fifteen when I cast the Killing Curse for the first time." Ignoring his friend's shocked expression, he continued, "Lucius... he taught them to me, the Unforgivables and many other Dark spells. I was a young werewolf, and fascinated with Dark Arts. There was nothing I wanted more than to know, and he was all too happy to teach."

"Oh." And Sirius remembered now, remembered the dream he had had some time back. Previously he had only remembered the part where Remus had tried to kill himself, but now he also remembered the werewolf talking to him. Remus's words from years back started to echo in his mind.

"I was fifteen, and desperate to know more about the powers that made me what I was - what I still am. And he was there, the Potions Assistant, young and tempting Lucius Malfoy - and horribly fond of the Dark Arts.

I asked him about them. And somehow we ended up practising those spells together. Doing that, we also fell in love."

"It brought you together," he said quietly. "The Dark Arts, I mean. When you practised together."

"So you remember it at last," his friend replied, raising an eyebrow. "I was beginning to think that you were a lot weaker than I thought. After all, Severus has fought down your charms on him three times in two years. From you it took twenty-five years, and I'm not even as close to you as you are to Severus."

"Memory Charms are on the border between Light and Dark," Sirius said, raising an eyebrow. "Therefore, it's quite obvious that your charm was a lot stronger than mine. And we both know that Severus is a strong-minded man, especially when his mind is being invaded with foreign spells or the like."

"Of course I know that," replied Remus calmly. "And I know also that he probably would prefer if you didn't talk about him like he wasn't here."

Now Sirius turned quickly to look at his husband, who had raised his eyebrow, a dry smirk on his lips. The Animagus paled, said, "Uh-oh," transformed and ran out of the door.

"Is there some intelligence-weakening spell they only cast on Gryffindors, Remus?" asked Severus dryly. "Because then your resistance to most spells and curses could explain the fact that you're the only grown-up Gryffindor I've ever known."

" That's probably only because the Sorting Hat was originally going to put me into Ravenclaw," Remus said, smiling. "I begged it to put me into Gryffindor because I was scared of Ravenclaws finding out my secret."

"How did you manage to lie in the trial, anyway?" asked Lucius as they then watched Severus hurrying away, chasing his husband. "Otherwise you were telling the truth, but I do know you lied about your natural Dark powers."

"Easy," replied the werewolf, shrugging. "I'm surprised you didn't notice it."

"Then what was it?" Lucius asked. He wasn't irritated, but it wasn't far away.

"The Wolf's Staff," replied Remus, smirking. "Without it I could only resist the binding spells for some time, but it gives me additional resistance against any charms. So, I could lie about my lycanthropic traits just because I am a Lycanthrope, and their leader on top of that."

"How fitting." And then Lucius leant forward to kiss him right on the lips. Neither of them noticed as Olivia sneaked out of the room, smiling slightly.