Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

The war had ended more than four years ago; Harry defeating Voldemort in a spectacular battle across the Hogwarts grounds. Many lives were lost, but thankfully none of her closest friends and none of her family. Severus had been cleared by his contribution to the final completion of the war and the records kept by the Headmaster in relation to the particulars of his death.

There could have been no better outcome.

It had been an undesirable event in their lives in everyway but it had made Hermione appreciate the small things in her life.

She loved, for instance, the sound of her husband's breaths; a gentle melody that she would fall to sleep to and wake up to everyday.

She liked to watch him sleep and he never said anything to make her think it annoyed him, and he had caught her many times.

Perhaps it was the way the morning light hit his golden hair making it sparkle on his cheek where it fell that made her reach to touch it...

His eyes fluttered open at her hand's light caress.

She withdrew her hand from his cheek placing it beneath her own as she lay on her side watching him.

Not meaning to have woken him, she smiled guiltily as she watched his bright blue eyes appear from their slumbered hold.

She loved those eyes.

When she had first returned she had been disheartened by their dull grey overlay but it was almost as if every day she had spent with him since had somehow made them come alive once more; the result being the shinning ocean depths before her, more swallowing in their hold than ever before.

His eyes settled on her as he adjusted to the bright light that shone through the lace curtained windows around them.

"Have you been awake long?" His voice was husky and sent gentle shivers down her spine.

She had to bite her lip to stop from moaning, still amazed that his voice alone could provoke such a response, but somehow managed to shake her head gently against her pillow in response to his question.

"Good."

She hadn't realized he had snaked a hand around her until a gentle push on her lower back sent her body flush with his.

Her eyes widened for a moment as she felt his obvious arousal, previously hidden to her by the sheets, but closed quickly as his lips settled over hers.

In one swift movement he rolled them over so that he was laying over her moving his mouth down her jaw line as he settled his legs either side of hers.

She didn't hold back her moan this time as his mouth traveled over her neck wetting it with gentle swipes of his tongue. She tipped her head back, arching her breasts into his chest as her hands grasped onto his back, the pressure of her finger tips encouraging his motions.

"Remus!" she gasped as his mouth attached to one silk covered nipple.

He pulled the tip of her breast into his mouth sucking it in as his tongue swept gentle circles over the raised bud.

He must have decided the material was in his way as he pushed the thin strap of her silk nightgown over her shoulder. She felt the cool air hit her naked breast before he covered her bare skin with his lips.

She pulled her head upright as she watched him trace his tongue around the underside of her exposed breast as his fingers played gently with the nipple of the other.

She could feel her centre pulsing with heat as he paid special attention to the three little white scars that marked the pale skin of her breast.

Their child had given her those.

Three little white scars that sat around her nipple. They looked so innocent.

It was ironic to contrast those three small barely visible marks when compared to the angry red patterns that had adorned her leg. Those marks too had healed. Not completely but with Remus' presence over the years they had faded to pale pink wounds.

Remus had been the one to mark her, terrifying in his werewolf state, but it had been their daughter, an innocent babe, that had introduced her to their family's curse.

Their daughter had not been sparred her father's affliction and proceeded to unknowingly afflict her mother as well. A gentle bite as a babe will do when their mother's milk is not flowing to their satisfaction.

The babe though not in her werewolf state had been the trigger to Hermione's curse, not a dramatic transition but more a cumulative turning. After the birth of their daughter Hermione was still susceptible to the light of a full moon, nights spent in painful tremors as her husband and daughter were not their to give her comfort.

Remus had been inconsolable at the thought of either of his family sharing his burden but Hermione had been adamant that her final transition had been a positive rather than a negative, by now experiencing the full aspects of the curse apart from the actual change, the aspect that would keep her away from her family once a month, she was glad she would at least be able to share their moonlit affliction together.

Remus had softened to the idea after the next few changes were virtually pain absent and he and his wife were able to spend the night lying underneath the oak trees that lined their property as they watched their cub play with the grasshoppers that would chirp noisily as they jumped through the long grass.

"I love you Mione," Remus' husky tones brought her back to the present as his hands pulled her silk gown up the length of her legs.

He pushed the material over her hips and her eyes fluttered as she felt the heat of his bare skin brush along her quivering hips.

She obediently opened her legs wider as he moved himself between them.

She ran her hands along the curve of his back as he bent his head taking her bottom lip between his teeth.

She could just feel the head of his erection touching her entrance as his hands tightened on her hips.

Her eye lids drifted shut as he rested his cheek against hers. She could feel his muscles in his back tighten beneath her finger tips as he shifted, poised just on the verge of -

- when the door banged open noisily.

Remus jumped, jerking awkwardly and falling to the side as the sound of small rushed footsteps filled their room.

"I'm ready!" The excited squeal of their four year old daughter came from underneath her half-pulled on jumper as she ran to her mother's side of the bed.

"Through locking charms now too?" Remus raised an eyebrow as he half fell off the bed, a hand hanging over the side searching for his pants from last night and wondering at the same time if he had actually bothered putting any on before joining his wife.

Hermione nodded as she slipped the strap of her gown back over her shoulder and righted herself before picking up the squirming child who couldn't seem to find the right hole in her outfit for her head not realizing that her arm was already occupying it.

"Now what did your father tell you about knocking?" Hermione gently admonished as she helped her daughter fix her jumper to rights.

A soft head of sandy blonde curls popped out from the green knit Weasley jumper followed by the soft pout of full pink lips and adorable but obviously practiced puppy dog eyes. They were not the bright pools of her father's but the glimmering brown of her mother's. Hermione knew Remus fell for the child's practiced look all the time.

"He told me to knock, even if the door will open for me - but you said that we could we go as soon as I was ready!" she added quickly before Hermione could interrupt.

"I did say that, didn't I?" Hermione considered the bouncing child in her lap.

"But your not ready if you haven't had breakfast are you?"

The young girl gave her mother a disparaging look as she huffily wiggled off of her lap and dropped to the floor.

"And your father and I will have to get dressed also, so -"

"Mother!"

"What was that Cassy Lupin?" Remus interrupted his daughter as she looked ready to stamp her foot and demand that they take her now, half dressed or not.

"I love you?" She added a toothy smile to the effect as she swayed her skirt back and forth innocently.

"I thought so," he jumped from the bed, pants obviously found and attached as the mother and daughter had chatted.

Cassy squealed as she saw his wriggling fingers reaching for her and turned to flee the room barely making three steps before she was swept up into her father's arms and tossed onto the bed as he proceeded to tickle her senseless.

"You've been spending too much time with your Uncle's Fred and George, you have." He laughed at her as she giggled under his fingertips.

Hermione left them to take her shower reappearing twenty minutes later to find them in the kitchen a stack of fresh waffles in the centre and chocolate sauce dribbling from their chins.

"Waffles and chocolate sauce for breakfast?" she stood at the doorway, her arms crossed across her soft blue cotton dress and her eyebrow raised at the two chocolate fiends messing her clean kitchen.

Her only response was two sets of matching pouts, so she shrugged her shoulders and took her seat at the small round table. "Pass me a waffle then would you?" she relented as she enjoyed their resultant beaming smiles.

It was another half an hour, or two billion hours as Cassy had counted, until they were finally standing at the fire place with floo powder in their hands.

Cassy was latched onto Hermione's shoulder, seated softly on her hip, as they entered the flames together.

"The Burrow," was all Hermione said before they were whizzing past grates and finally staggering ungracefully into the Weasley living room.

Large hands on her shoulders reached to steady her but she was quickly pushed back as her daughter leaped into the arms of the man with a loud squeal of -

"AUNT SIRI!"

Remus whom had flooed in right behind her caught her before she could stumble from the force of her daughter's leap.

"Aunt Siri?" Cassy lent in to whisper conspiratorially into Sirius' ear. "Are you coming over tonight?"

Sirius often accompanied the family on a full moon and he was more than welcome too by Hermione and Remus. Cassy simply adored the older man and often announced to her mother that she was going to marry him one day 'because poor Aunt Siri doesn't have a girlfriend'.

Hermione would indulge her daughter's sincerity and encourage her to ask for the biggest ring possible because 'Aunt Siri was loaded'.

But Sirius shook his head at the small girl in his arms. "I'm sorry pumpkin, I can't this time but I think I heard Harry say something about brooms this morning, how about we challenge him to a game after lunch?"

She nodded her head enthusiastically, "But I'll only be on your team if you can convince Uncle Harry to let us use his broom again. His broom is the best!"

Hermione had been scarred out of her wits the first time the word 'broom' was mentioned around her little girl but she had relented somewhat after Harry had explained the charms they would place on the toy version for her safety and after three years of the toy broom her daughter had demanded that she was ready for a 'real' one. Hermione had swallowed her fears as Remus had taken the child with him on his own broom. The charms he used prevented the girl from falling along with the strong arms wrapped around her waist by her father.

She trusted Sirius and Harry to be safe with her daughter whom absolutely adored flying with her Uncles, a trait definitely not inherited from her mother; Hermione knew flying was just not something she would ever understand as enjoyment.

"Hey," Sirius narrowed his eyes at the girl on his hip. "Why does Harry get Uncle and I get Aunt?"

Hermione could hear Remus laugh softly in her ear as their daughter sighed at Sirius' apparently annoying question.

"Because you have long hair, silly!" She put a small hand into his dark locks, letting the hair fall through her fingers till it reached his shoulder. "Only Aunts have long hair Aunt Siri!" She rolled her eyes like it was obvious.

"Oh my mistake. Sorry pumpkin," Sirius apologized as the girl wiggled her legs, a sign that she wanted to be put down.

He placed her on the ground as she turned to face him.

"I'm not a pumpkin!" She tapped her foot impatiently at him.

"If you keep drinking pumpkin juice like I saw you racing Teddy yesterday you'll turn into one soon enough," he laughed as the young girl bit her lip and her shinning brown eyes looked up at him frightened.

"Is that what happened to Uncles Fred and George?" she whispered, her eyes impossibly large.

"No, love, that was,"

"A Hungarian Horntail,"

"Right scary,"

"Nearly nipped our heads of it did,"

"Made it out by the tips of our heads so to speak."

The twins came in from the kitchen, jumping into the conversation as if they were simply made of extendable ears.

Cassy however put her hands on her hips, an unknowingly miniature version of her mother as she had chastised the twins repeatedly in their school days, not at all pleased with their contribution.

"Don't try and trick me, I know it was pumpkin juice!"

"Sorry sprite," George knelt down to meet her stance. "I brought over the new stuff again; want to go turn Uncle Ron into an elephant?"

Her eyes lit up as she ran to take his offered hand.

"Yes!" she squealed excitingly. "You know? You're way cooler than Uncle Fred!"

"Hey!" Fred shouted indignantly as he raced after the retreating pair, completely oblivious to the exaggerated wink Cassy and George shared.

Sirius rolled his eyes affectionately at the young girl as he turned back to the couple behind him, catching them as they had one foot in the fireplace.

"You're not staying for lunch then?"

"No, Cassy's all yours Godmom," Remus stepped over the grate pulling Hermione into his arms as he did so. "We have some ... unfinished business."

Hermione bit her lip unable to stop the bright red blush from staining her cheeks as Sirius smirked knowingly.

With a swirl of green flames they were back in their cottage and Remus was chasing her up the stairs.

She squealed as he caught her from behind just as she reached the bed.

He picked her up as she laughed, thrashing her legs playfully in an attempt to make him let her go.

His arms tightened around her and he stood waiting for her to breaths to settle down.

"You should have realized by know Hermione," his breath was hot on her neck and she wondered if he knew how his husky voice was sending pleasant shivers down her body. "I'm never going to let you go."

If you've made it this far - don't I deserve a review? *makes puppy dog eyes*

Hope you liked it as much as I loved writing it! :D

xx CharlotteBlack xx - & if you're interested you can check out my other fics at GrangerEnchanted under the penname CharlotteBlack