The Matchmaker

Chapter Twenty Nine: The Wolf

Chapter Twenty Nine: The Wolf
"Throw me to the wolves and I'll return leading the pack." Suzanne Collins
~

Emma wasn't sure why she was worried about talking to Sirius about her pregnancy because he was thrilled. By the time she was in her second month, he had decided the baby would be a boy. After telling Sirius, telling the others was no problem. Lily had let out a shriek of joy, Marlene made an inappropriate joke that Emma wouldn't dare repeat, Anna started gushing about baby names, Alice was ready to start planning her baby shower, and Mary had already declared the baby should be named after her (for no reason other than Mary wanted a baby named after her).

The two had also sent a letter to Mr. and Mrs. Potter, who were thrilled that one of their sons would be having a baby, and they were glad the baby would be born in September when they were done school. Emma also sent a letter to Holly and told her that she wanted to stay as close to Sirius as possible. Holly, for some reason, was not at all surprised about the pregnancy announcement and insisted that Emma would always have a place to stay with her.

They knew that telling people early on in the pregnancy was risky because there was a miscarriage possibility, but Emma and Sirius needed all the support they could get. It was also annoying that everyone started complaining when the two would disappear into the kitchens to get peaches and pickles for Emma. Eventually, the two soon-to-be parents decided to tell everyone.

By March, Emma still wasn't showing and she was thrilled about that, though she had gotten a letter from the Matchmaker saying that she'd finished the potion that would help conceal the pregnancy. March 10th came very quickly between baby talk, classes, and exam prep. After spending so much time preparing for their N.E.W.Ts in two months, Remus himself forgot about his birthday.

It wasn't until he walked into the common room and everyone screamed out surprise that he even bothered to check the date. The night was spent eating cake, watching old muggle movies and exchanging presents. Almost everyone had given him books and chocolates other that Sirius, who bought him a few muggle records of their favorite bands, and James, who had gotten him a few hand-knitted sweaters. One was missing an arm, but James was so proud that Remus knew it was the thought that counted.

Even Professor McGonagall had sent him a birthday basket full of assorted chocolates. Remus loved everything about the day: he felt so loved surrounded by his friends, though he did wish Holly could have been there. Remus hadn't seen much of her other than the full moons when she injected the wolfsbane into his neck, and she was gone before he could properly strike up a conversation with her.

The two had, however, been owling back and forth and it was common for Neona to drop off an owl for him. Lily loved that Holly was using Neona. It was rare for Holly to send out letters to anyone else using her personal owl other than Lily, and the young woman was proud of both of them for finding comfort and reaching out to one another.

For the first time ever, the Marauders would often find Remus going to the owlery with a letter clutched tightly in his hand.

Tonight was no exception.

Seeing as it was his birthday, the group couldn't protest when Remus decided to slip out of the common room and make his way up to the owlery. He was thrilled that Neona was waiting for him with a letter from Holly in her beak. The letter was less of a letter, unfortunately, and more of a note. Carefully, Remus unfolded it.

Turn around.

Remus whipped around as fast as he could and saw Holly standing there with a smile on her face. She found herself instantly engulfed in a hug that she melted into, taking in his very Remus scent.