Two Padfoots and a Prongslett

|1| For The Love of Merlin's Moth Eaten Robes

"Mummy! Why can't Daddy Charm my hair pink for school?" Gwenevere Black whined to her mother Ailee Black.

"Yeah Ails! Why not?" Sirius asked his wife, the slightest beginnings of a smirk creeping upon his face.

Ailee gave a look to her husband and his childish ways. "Because your hair is beautiful the way it is, Gwennie," she said lovingly to her 12 year old daughter.

"Ughhh! But it's so boring!! Right Daddy!" she said looking for her father to back her up.

"Oh, you are wrong there, little pup," he said shaking his head and moving toward his auburn haired wife. "It's the same color as your mothers, which I personally find absolutely stunning." He then proceeded to give his wife a chaste kiss on the lips, much to his daughters dismay.

"Yuuuuuckkkk. Stop it! Please!! For the love of Merlin's moth eaten robes!! No more!! My eyes! They buuurrrrnnnn!!!" The auburn haired girl cried out dramatically, shielding her eyes and rolling on the floor.

"She gets her dramatic tendencies from you, you know..." Sirius said to his wife with a wink as she rolled her eyes, smiling. "Okay maybe she gets it from me.. but 'Merlin's moth eaten robes'? That's all you," he said laughing.

Of the three children, Gwenevere (or Gwen) was the most outgoing and dramatic. She had always wished that she had pink hair or really any other color then the dark red color she actually possessed.

"At least your hair doesn't stick up in the back like mine!" Harry scoffed.

Harry Potter. The boy who lived. The boy whose eyes and personality resembled his mother's and whose everything else resembled his father.

Sirius ruffled the 11 year old boy's messy jet black hair. "It looks like your dad's... Smells a lot better though," Sirius added thoughtfully nodding, earning a strange look from all. "His always smelled faintly of dung-bombs growing up," he smirked.

"Why is everyone in this house so obsessed with their hair?" Ailee said exasperatedly.

"I'm not!" Wendy said defensively.

Wendy was indeed the most down to earth and calm of the group. She had long dark hair that fell in loose curls down her back and framed her sweet face. She had bright baby blue eyes, and freckles across her nose, just like her mother, but her face still held her chubby baby fat giving her a cherubic cuteness about her.

"Can we please get back to the matter at hand?!" Gwen exclaimed.

Just then, green flames within the fireplace appeared then receded to reveal a tall man with ashy brown hair and faint scars across his face.

"MOOONYYYY!" the family of five said in unison.

"Oomph. You lot are getting too big! You are going to tackle me one of these days!" he chuckled as the family of five gave him a big group hug.

"Remmy! We weren't expecting you until this afternoon!" Ailee exclaimed, rushing to grab him a cup of tea.

"Well I was just in a meeting with Dumbledore and well... he would like to speak with you two," he said looking to the two adults.

"Us? Now? Here?!" Sirius asked.

Remus chuckled again, "Oh no! Not here—he would like to have you two come to his office. I can stay here and watch the little ones—"

"We aren't little Uncle Moony!" Gwen protested.

"My apologies, Lady Gwenevere," Remus said with a half smile and a tiny bow to the feisty girl.

"Are you sure? They've been a bit rambunctious..." Sirius trialed off.

"Oh he'll be fine! Just don't let Gwen talk you into turning her hair pink," Ailee told their werewolf friend.

And with that Ailee and Sirius took the floo to Dumbledores office.

Harry was suspicious. He had only met the man called dumbledore once and he had been very young at the time. He remembered  distinctly that he smelled of lemon candies and wore very strange clothes, clothes very different from his Aunt Ailee and Uncle Sirius.

The three children bombarded Remus with requests for him to do all sorts of silly entertaining spells which he gladly humored them with. About an hour later, Ailee and Sirius returned in a great poof of green fire wearing expressions much heavier than their usual lightness, or so Harry and Wendy noticed... Gwen was looking in the mirror, basking in the sight of her now pink hair.

Ailee spotted Remus looking guilty... then she spied her pink haired daughter. "Weak... " she smirked.

"So what did Mr. dum dum or whatever his name is want?" Wendy asked with an uncharacteristic amount of bluntness.

"Wendy! His name is Professor Dumbledore and he is going to be your headmaster when you go off to school next week!" Sirius scolded fiercely. Wendy's lip began to quiver and she looked about ready to cry. "I'm sorry Wendy... Daddy's just in a bad mood," he said going to console the girl.

"Why?" Harry asked, even more suspicious of Mr. Dum dum than before.

"I think it might be best if we all sit down so we can explain," Ailee said. Remus looked awkward. "You too Remmy. Sit," she said pointing to a seat in the living room where they were gathered. He obeyed.

Everyone took their spots with quizzical looks of expectation, and Sirius and Ailee sat beside each other with hands intertwined. "Alright. So you all know that Harry will be starting his first year at Hogwarts, and that he will be fairly well known because of his past. Well... Dumbledore suggested—"

"—blackmailed is more like it," Sirius muttered under his breath.

"—that we, meaning Sirius and I, that we um... toss  two gnomes with one throw as they say," Ailee chuckled nervously.

"Meaning what exactly?" Gwen asked.

"Meaning that we want to obviously make sure you all are safe, but especially Harry given the dark wizards who may want to hurt him..." Sirius began.

"And well Dumbledore thought since there were a few unfilled teaching positions that we could... Fill them while we keep an eye on you lot of trouble makers..." Ailee said nervously.

"Wait. So you would be going to teach at the school?!" Gwen asked incredulously.

"Um. Yes," Ailee answered.

"NO NO NO NO!" Gwen shouted. Sirius stood up and gave her a very stern look. She sat down, quietly fuming.

"I think it sounds delightful!" Wendy said happily. She was very worried about being away from her parents for so long.

"I mean, it's not like we would see you all the time right? We would get to still hang out in the dorms with the other kids?" Harry asked.

"Yes! Yes of course! Sirius and I would have our own chambers, but you would all be off being educated and causing mischief," she winked. Harry shrugged, he was fine with them being there.

"NO BUT IT WILL BE SO EMBARRASSING!" Gwen whined loudly.

"What will you be teaching?" Remus asked with a half smile while Wendy looked on in excitement for their answer.

"Well Sirius will be taking over to teach Astronomy, and I will be teaching Care of Magical Creatures," she said with a smile.

Gwen continued to whine and complain about how they were 'ruining her life' and 'murdering any chance she had at popularity with a flaming bludger', Wendy was in chipper spirits, but Harry thought there was more to the story.

What was it Uncle Sirius had mentioned? Blackmail? He found this all very odd, but couldn't yet put the pieces together as to why. But, with school a week away and preparations to be made for the whole family to ship off to Hogwarts, they all had a great many other things to worry about for the time being.