Another day, another morning, and Rose again woke up with cold toes and an uneasy feeling in her stomach.

Toffee escorted her to breakfast just as she had yesterday, and Rose despondently pushed potatoes around on her plate while avoiding Dumbledore's gaze, the conversation that she had with the headmaster the previous night still burning in her mind.

While Hogwarts had been intimidating the day before, the knowledge that Sirius could be making his way toward her only served to heighten her nerves. Just the fact that Dumbledore suspected her was unsettling. If he thought that she might have some knowledge into her first husband's plans, what would others think? How many of the other teachers knew her history? How many of them thought that she had helped with the the escape?

Snape, in particular, worried her.

Sirius had told her what he had done to Snape while they had been kids, laughing with his devil-may-care attitude and telling her that James had over-reacted. They had gotten into a horrible fight about that, her shocked and appalled that he would be so callus to Remus when her life had been ruined by the mere rumor that she was a werewolf.

Remus, surprisingly, had been the one to come to Sirius's defense, saying that Snape was nothing more than a horrid racist who deserved everything he got. But surely Dumbledore wouldn't hire such a man to teach children?

Toffee again lead Rose to her classroom, and Rose was pleased to see that she mostly remembered how to get there. She suspected that she would be able to find her own way in a few days, eliminating the need to be shown around like a child.

She worked on her lesson plans all day and took lunch in her office, unwilling to face the other professors or to hear McGonagall and Trelawny fight again.

Dinner rolled around and she walked with heavy feet along side Toffee to the great hall, thankful that tomorrow's dinner would take place at Hope's house, involving cake and absolutely zero work colleges.

Well, except for Remus, but he didn't really count.

Walking into the great hall, she was surprised by two new faces, an older plump woman sitting on McGonagall's left, and an extremely short man sitting on a stack of books sitting by Dumbledore.

"Hello!" She greeted as she sat down, "I'm Rose, the new muggle studies professor."

"Excellent, excellent!" The little man enthused, "I'm Filius Flitwick, it's so wonderful to meet you!"

"And I'm Sprout," the woman introduced, leaning over McGonagall to shake Rose's hand, "Pomona Sprout. I'm head of Hufflepuff, and Filius is head of Ravenclaw."

"Wit beyond measure!" Flitwick quoted, waggling a finger in the air.

"Pleased to meet you both," Rose said with a smile, loading mashed potatoes on her plate, "Who are the heads of Gryffindor and Slytherin?"

"I'm the head of Gryffindor," McGonagall informed her proudly, then, with a sniff, she continued, "Severus is the head of Slytherin."

Rose attempted to look only politely interested in the knowledge, swallowing back her questions with a spoonful of peas.

If Remus and Sirius were to be believed, Snape was a wholly unpleasant person with no tolerance for fools or anyone of impure blood, but to be a teacher of children, and a head of house to top it off, he would have to teach children of varying levels of purity and foolishness.

But then again, she hadn't talked about Snape for twelve years, it would be impossible to not change in that time, and perhaps she was remembering the name wrong anyway.

She chatted idly with the professors, all of them eager to give advice to a new teacher, and when she went back to her room afterward, the feeling of unease she had woken up with had been soothed.

The next morning she awoke in a better mood, and, like a child right after a sleepover, she was glad to be going home. Though she was still spending the morning at Hogwarts, she would be flooing to Hope's after lunch, where she would spend the night.

It had only been two days since she had last seen Remus, but it felt like a lifetime, especially because she had been surrounded by unfamiliar magic the whole time.

Dressing quickly, she had enough time to make herself a cup of tea before Toffee showed up.

"Good morning Toffee!" She greeted with a smile.

"Good morning, Miss!" The elf squeaked, giving a curtsy so low that Rose was afraid that she would topple over, "You seems happy today, Miss, yes you do's!"

"It's a happy day, Toffee, I have the afternoon off! Do you want any tea?"

The elf's scandalized face implied that she did not, in fact, want tea.

"Humans do not… Miss you shouldn't… You should not offer house elves food, no you shouldn't, we offers the Wizards food, yes we does."

"I'm not a wizard," she clarified, "but I won't offer you anything if it makes you uncomfortable."

Toffee pulled a pained face, as though Rose's ignorance of the wizarding world physically hurt her, but composed herself quickly, leading Rose out into the hallway and toward the great hall.

"Do you have other duties, Toffee?" Rose asked as they walked, curious as to what the elf was doing when not acting as her babysitter.

"Oh yes," she squeaked with pride, "I cleans your classroom and Master Lupin's classroom, and when I is done I helps out in the kitchen! I have been here all my life, so I oversees the food!"

"Do you like working in the kitchen?"

"Of course, Miss, I is very good."

"Glad to hear it," Rose replied, smiling at the elf before saying: "I'd like to lead myself around after breakfast if you don't mind. I'm hoping it will stick to my memory better if I don't have someone leading me."

Rose had worried that the elf would take offense, but Toffee just smiled.

"Of course, of course! Just call if you needs me, Miss!"

"Oh, I'm sure I will," Rose said with a laugh.

Breakfast was uneventful, and so was the rest of her morning, but even though she was jittery about leaving, she was glad she had stayed for lunch when she walked in to see a man ten times her size sitting at the table.

"Hagrid!"

Rubeus Hagrid looked up with a start, a smile spreading across his face as he stood, bumping the table and knocking his massive chair over.

"Rose! Why I never. It's mighty good to see ya!"

He strode toward her and she met him in the middle, giving him a hug and being enveloped in his arms.

She had met Hagrid during the war, when Sirius and Remus had both been in the Order of the Phoenix. James and Lily and Peter had been members too, but it hurt to think about that.

"How are ya, how are ya?" Hagrid asked, thumping her on the back and knocking the breath out of her.

"Good," she wheezed, giving him a smile when he released her, "And you?"

Hagrid beamed and puffed his chest out, obviously proud about something.

"I'm the new Care of Magical Creature's professor! Me! A professor! Can you believe it?"

"That's wonderful!" She said, still trying to catch her breath, "I suppose we'll see each other in the teacher's lounge."

"Teacher's lounge? Blimey, are you teachin'?"

"Yep!" She confirmed with a smile, "Muggle Studies."

"Suppose tha' makes sense," he said, furrowing his brow before nodding to himself.

They took their seats, and it was only then that Rose noticed two more additions to their table.

An older woman with graying black hair and harsh lines on her face was sitting next to another woman, not much older than Rose, with brown hair and lovely dark brown skin.

"Hello," Rose greeted, sitting opposite them, "I'm Rose Hayworth, nice to meet you."

"Septuma Vector," the older woman said, reaching across the table to shake hands, "I teach Arithmancy."

"I'm Aurora Sinistra," the other introduced, choosing to wave instead, "I'm the astronomy professor. It's good to see another witch on staff."

"Oh, I'm not a witch," she corrected, loading chicken onto her plate, "I'm a muggle."

"Oh!" Sinistra replied, "I'm sorry, I didn't realize. It does certainly make you qualified for the position though, doesn't it?"

"Rose has the privilege of being the first ever muggle employed at Hogwarts," Dumbledore interjected, looking pleased.

"I don't mean to offend you," Vector started, looking as though she didn't care if she offended Rose, "But how on earth have you not been obliviated? Are you a squib?"

"I'm married to a wizard," Rose explained, knuckles going white as she gripped her fork, "Remus Lupin actually, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor."

"Oh, I went to school with Lupin!" Sinistra exclaimed, "We were potions partners once. He was so charming, always hanging out with Potter and-"

She came to an abrupt halt, but even though she hadn't said the name, Sirius Black came to the forefront of everyone's minds.

The table was silent for a minute, no one even daring to scrape their silverware against their plates, when Vector asked: "Did you know him? Did you know Black?"

"Septuma!" McGonagall admonished, though she grew silent when Rose raised her hand.

"It's all right," Rose assured, "It was going to come out eventually. It was through him I was introduced to Remus; Sirius was my first husband."

Sinistra made a quiet gasp and Flitwick let go of his fork, the utensil clattering loudly on the golden plates.

"Apologies, Apologies!" Flitwick squeaked, clambering down from the books he had been seated on to retrieve it from the floor.

The corner of Rose's mouth turned up in an absentminded smile at the Charms teacher, but when she spoke, she spoke softly.

"I never… I never knew, never even had an inkling. Whether that makes me a good wife or a bad one I'm not sure but…. I know he's out, believe me I'm as terrified as you, perhaps more so, but you don't have to worry about me, or about Remus. We're just trying to live a quiet life, it's all we ever try to do. Though, I would appreciate it if you wouldn't tell the students."

"Of course we wouldn't tell the students," Vector promised, speaking as though it was obvious, "Hooligans the lot of them, they wouldn't know how to handle themselves."

"You poor dear," Professor Sprout said, "I can't imagine how horrible this is for you."

Sinistra reached across the table to pat Rose's hand sympathetically.

"No one could possibly have known," McGonagall agreed quietly, "I was his head of house for seven years, far longer than you were married, and I never dreamed he would have been capable of… Well, of what he did."

"He talked of you quite fondly, Minerva, if that means anything," she comforted, "All the Marauders did."

"Marauders," Dumbledore said with a chuckle, "Now that's a name I haven't heard in some time. Do any of you remember when they enchanted the ceiling to snow one Christmas?"

"The work of your Remus, I should think," Hagrid said with a grin, waggling a finger at Rose.

And just like that the somber mood was broken, and the professors were all laughing and talking about the pranks students had pulled over the years, bringing up the Marauders and the Weasley twins more than once.

Lunch passed quickly with laughter, and soon Rose was standing in Hope Lupin's fireplace, brushing soot off her dress.

"Mrs. Lupin!" Hope greeted when she saw her daughter-in-law, holding out her arms for a hug.

"Mrs. Lupin," Rose replied with a smile, dropping her overnight bag on the hearth and hugging the older woman back.

Hope Lupin was in her muggle in mid-sixties, and though she had a few more wrinkles than she should due to her stress over her son's condition, she was still a happy woman, and though Remus more favored his father in looks, his smile and gentle nature he had gotten from her.

"Let us have a look at you," Hope said when they pulled apart, putting her hands on Rose's shoulders and stepping away, "Why, you look wonderful! Have they been feeding you well at that school?"

"More than enough," Rose answered with a smile, "Hogwarts is fantastic, I wish you could see it!"

"Oh, I don't know about that," Hope said, laughing, "I'd take a wrong turn and run into a dragon!"

Even though Hope had always loved her husband and son unconditionally, she had never quite carried a love for magic, especially after Remus had been bitten.

"Go ahead and put your stuff upstairs dear, I'm still working on the cake," Hope told Rose.

"The cake?" Rose exclaimed with a laugh, "Hope, it's your birthday, we should be the ones cooking."

"We both know my son couldn't cook if his life depended on it," she said with a wave of her hand, "and no offense dear, but you never make the frosting quite right."

Rolling her eyes good naturedly, Rose stood on her toes to give Hope a kiss on the cheek, and then headed upstairs with her bag.

After Lyall had died Hope had moved to a little two story farmhouse in the countryside. It was old, and there was a draft in the winter, but Remus always warded the house with heating spells, and, most importantly, there was an old potato cellar under the house that was perfect for Remus's transformations.

Rose set down her bag and took a moment to admire the view out the window.

Remus was in the back yard, chopping wood shirtless, his braces hanging around his waist, muscles shifting enticingly with each swing of the axe. He was too skinny to be comfortable, with every rib showing, and scars ripped across every inch of his skin, but Rose's heart still skipped a beat at the sight of her husband, even after ten years.

Smiling, she pulled open the window and leaned out, whistling a catcall.

Remus looked up at the sound of the whistle, a smile breaking across his face when he saw his wife.

"I am more than a hunk of meat you know," he called up with playful admonishment.

"Not to me you aren't!" She yelled back with a grin.

"Jump down!" He encouraged, arms outstretched as if to catch her.

"Are you crazy?" She asked, already bracing herself to jump.

"Only for you," he answered back with a laugh, pulling his wand out of his back pocket and charming her.

She jumped out of the window and slowly floated down, giggling, giving time for Remus to stow his wand back in his pocket and reach out for her.

She landed gently in his arms and he spun her around before setting her on the ground.

"Every time I see you you get more beautiful," he murmured reverently, bringing his hands to either side of his face.

She smiled mischievously and told him, "And every time I see you your nose gets bigger."

He laughed, the gap between his front teeth showing before he leaned down to kiss her, tilting his head so that his (admittedly big) nose didn't bump hers.

"I've missed you so much," she told him when he pulled away, soothing her thumbs over the bare skin of his arms, "I've been terrified without you."

"Is it really that bad?" He asked sharply, instantly concerned, "Have you felt unsafe? Has someone threatened you? Have you told Dumbledore? Is-"

"Remus, Remus, calm down, honey, I'm fine. All the other professors have been wonderful, it's just… I'm the only one in the castle without magic, the only person there who hasn't grown up in the wizarding world, who didn't go to school there. It's just… Magic is more fun when I know you've got my back."

"Always," he promised, "I'll never let a thing happen to you love, I'll always be there for you. I'll pack my things tonight, I'm sure Dumbledore will understand if I come early-"

"No, no," she protested, "I can't have you come running everytime I cry, I'll never learn to do a thing for myself. Besides," she reached up to kiss one of the bags under his eyes, "The full moon's in two days, you're not well enough to come with me. You've told me before the transformations are better when you're at home."

He sighed, looking every bit as weary as he felt, and her heart was filled, as it often was, with sorrow that such a wonderful man should have to carry such a horrible burden.

"Are you sure?" He asked, giving her one last chance.

"Positive," she confirmed, "Now let's get you inside and put some clothes on you."

Remus leaned down to give her another peck and then let her go, holding the firewood in one arm and putting his other arm around her as they walked toward the house.

"You know your mother is making her own birthday cake?" Rose asked with a smile, leaning into her husband's side.

Remus laughed.

"That does sound like her."

While Hope did make her own cake, Rose insisted on cooking the rest of the meal, and after eating, gift giving, and a loud rendition of "Happy Birthday," the three Lupins retired upstairs, Hope going to her room and Remus and Rose going to theirs.

"Everything all right, love?" Remus asked when he came back from the bathroom to find Rose sitting on the bed staring off into space.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," she said with a wave of her hand.

Remus wasn't convinced, but he went about his business, knowing she would tell him if it was important.

"Do you remember Severus Snape?" She asked suddenly, looking over at him.

He paused with his shirt halfway off, surprised by the question, before resuming undressing.

"Merlin, I haven't thought about him in years. Why do you ask?"

"He's the potions professor at Hogwarts," she informed him, "And head of Slytherin house. Didn't you say he was a racist?"

"A professor?" Remus repeated, shaking his head in confusion, "Are you sure it's Snape?"

"It's not exactly a common name, Remus," she said with playful exasperation.

"Yes, he was a racist. When we were at school, anyway. He called Lily a… A you-know-what. He was a death eater for a time, but Dumbledore testified for him, said he was a double agent. There was a piece about it in the Prophet. I suppose he also gave him a job."

"Oh, it's good to know he was on our side, I was concerned."

"Rose…" Remus started, trousers unbuttoned but still gripped in his hands, "Is he at Hogwarts yet?"

"No," she said with a shake of her head, "It's why I asked about him, I haven't met him yet."

"I'm sure Dumbledore wouldn't hire anyone he didn't trust," Remus began, slowly stepping out of his trousers, "And I don't think it's fair to judge him on the way he was at school, but I would prefer it if you weren't alone with him; he used to be very outspoken about his hatred of muggles, and I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Remus," she asked as he slipped on his pajama bottoms, "If he's the potion master, won't he be making your potions?"

"I suppose so," he answered, biting his lip, "but again, I don't think Dumbledore would hire someone he didn't trust."

Rose nodded, trusting her husband's judgement, and slipped under the blankets, holding up the corner so Remus could do the same.

They lay in silence for a second, Remus on his back and Rose's head on his chest, before Rose asked another question.

"Wasn't he the one that Sirius tried to lure to the shrieking shack?"

Remus took a deep inhale, jostling his wife slightly.

"What Sirius did was a horrible thing, he not only betrayed me by telling Snape about me, but he endangered the life of a human being for sport. Even though Snape had said some terrible things he was still just a child, and didn't deserve to have his life be played with like that."

Rose propped her chin up on her husband's chest, squinting to see him in the dark.

"I'm surprised to hear you say that, last time we talked about this you couldn't wait to jump to Sirius's defense."

She felt his body stiffen underneath her.

"The last time we talked about this I was still madly in love with him and had zero sense of self worth. I didn't agree with him, but I was willing to put myself down to… I don't know, impress him? It didn't make sense, but… You remember what loving him was like."

She did. Remembered the spark in her stomach when her eyes caught his, the constant feeling of falling, of chasing, willing to do anything for a moment by his side. He was like fire, his touch burning, his kiss scorching, his love an open flame. Despite everything he had done, all the lives he had destroyed, there was still not a day that went by that she did not miss him.

Remus was steady and calm and she loved him, loved him truly and loved him madly, but he was waves lapping softly on the shore while Sirius had been a storm.

"Sometimes I forget, that you loved him just as much as I did," she confessed, laying her head back down on his chest.

"I wish I could forget it," he told her, "It would make it easier. Do you know I…" He trailed off for a moment, but picked back up when Rose pressed a kiss over his heart, "As much as I hate him, as much as I would kill him if I could, I'm glad that he's escaped? Death I would wish upon him easily, but the dementors… He was my friend once, and I'm glad he could have these days where he was free of them. I hope they kill him when they find him, to spare him from going back."

Bringing her arm to clutch him closer, Rose let out a shaky breath.

"I didn't tell Dumbledore about Sirius being an animagus," she said softly, "I couldn't bring myself to do it. Sirius has taken so much from me, so much from us, but that one little thing I couldn't do. I hate him, hate him so much but I-"

She broke off with a sob, the breath choking in her throat as Remus brought his arms to wrap around her.

"It's all right, lovely, it's all right," he soothed, bringing a hand up to stroke her hair.

"I love you so much, Remus," she sobbed, "You're everything, everything to me, I could never live without you, I'm so glad to be your wife."

She continued to cry for a while, Remus soothing her the whole time, but eventually quieted down.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, "I'm a mess. You must be exhausted, you shouldn't have to deal with me the night before the full moon."

"Rose," he said, and from his tone of voice she could tell he was serious, "You are not a mess, I always want to deal with you, full moon be damned, and I am also, very, very glad that I'm your husband."

She laughed, watery but genuine, and said, "I'm glad you're my husband too."

#############

Thank you so much for all your lovely reviews! Let me tell you there's nothing more rewarding than reading a review and knowing the effort I put into this was worth it! As to LunaWolfSunTigeress15's question, yes there will be Sirius/Remus slash also! I'm most likely going to do a flashback chapter after this, but after that will be the first day at Hogwarts. Harry and Snape will make their appearances, and we'll see how Remus and Rose are settling into their new jobs!