One Year Later

"Sirius Orion Black, you DO NOT disturb her, she is getting dressed!" Molly Weasley screamed up the staircase of the Burrow at Sirius' retreating form. He threw his arm back behind him in a 'shoo-ing' motion and continued clomping up the stairs. He was wearing a purple velvet blazer over a cream colored shirt tucked into the tight leather pants he had grown so fond of wearing. He knew he clashed with the entire color scheme of Remus and Hermione's wedding but he really didn't give a damn. Only within the past month had he really come to terms with their relationship and started to move on, but he wasn't quite healed yet.

Sirius didn't bother knocking, just waltzed into Ginny's bedroom which had been transformed into the Bride's dressing room. No one bothered to tell him to leave—the girls were all too smart to know that he wouldn't.

"Where is the woman of the hour?" he asked Luna who was flitting around in her knee-length midnight blue bridesmaid dress.

"Ginny is buttoning her up, she'll be right out…" the blonde said airily. He stood with his hands in his jacket pockets nervously, wondering what it would be like to see his former love in a wedding dress on a day that didn't involve him meeting her at the end of the aisle.

He didn't have to wait long. Ginny and Hermione walked out of the bathroom that had been magically enlarged for the time being. Ginny looked stunning in her blue dress that complimented her pale skin nicely-but Hermione was absolutely breathtaking.

Her wedding dress was a strapless bodice with at least a hundred little buttons up the back that flowed out over her hips to a full skirt with a long train. The entire thing was white lace and it was glamorous and vintage at the same time. Her usually curly hair was straightened and pinned up and she was very nearly glowing in excitement. She hardly looked like the girl who had battled valiantly in the second war—she looked feminine and soft and most of all: happy.

Sirius' breath was momentarily taken away at the sight of her, and he noticed happily that there was no bite mark on her bare shoulder. Hermione had picked out that style of dress to show everyone, and mostly Sirius, that she hadn't been marked by Remus yet.

"You look lovely, and as the best man I have come to bring you good news. Remus has not gotten cold feet and is still in the house," he winked at Hermione who rolled her eyes. It had been a hard transition for them after the break-up, and for the few months after Remus had proposed. The wedding had come so quickly and she knew it couldn't be easy for Sirius. However, they were slowly starting to fall back into friendship, a deep friendship that still had a lot of love. Besides Harry and Ginny—Sirius was now her best friend.

"Do you have everything you need? Something old, new, borrowed, and blue-all that traditional nonsense?" he asked and Ginny's face suddenly went pale.

"Shit! I forgot…" she groaned.

"And what a top-notch maid of honor you are," Sirius smirked. Ginny threw him a murderous look.

"She has my garter on…that's borrowed," Fleur chimed in.

"And her knickers are blue," Luna shrugged while Hermione blushed profusely.

"But we are missing the old and new parts," Hermione finished. Sirius pulled out a little box from his pocket.

"I banked on that fact…here you go, my wedding present to you," he offered it to her and she opened it to find a pair of beautiful diamond earrings.

"Sirius this is too much…"

"No it's not, actually. I had the diamond removed from your…erm…birthday present, and split in two to make the earrings. Something old made new. And mostly because the return policy was shit on the ring," he joked. She took them out of the box and fastened them onto her ears, smiling.

"Thank you, they are perfect," she said softly and he nodded in reply.

"You really do look beautiful," he told her.

"Stop being such a sap…" Hermione sniffed back a tear, dabbing at her eye as she playfully pushed him out of the room, "Now go and make sure my groom is at the end of the aisle alright?"

A half hour later, Remus John Lupin and Hermione Jean Granger were standing before their friends and the friends that were their family to exchange vows. It was a simple wedding, with Arthur Weasley officiating, and Fleur, Ginny, and Luna standing by Hermione and Sirius, Harry, and Bill standing by Remus.

"And now for the exchanging of the rings," Arthur smiled, having to hold back some tears. His wife was openly bawling in the front row—Molly was always a mess at any wedding. Ron sat near the back, but Tonks hadn't been invited.

"Hermione, you have accepted me in ways no one else in the world has. You have a beautiful heart and soul and I love you more than a lifetime of words could ever tell you. You are my friend, my supporter, my lover, my confidant, and you helped me realize the man I could be. I stand before you today as that man because of you. I promise to be forever loyal and faithful to you, to keep you safe, and to love you as long as I will live," Remus told her softly, slipping a very intricate gold band onto her left ring finger and it rested over the simple engagement ring he had given her six months prior. Hermione's smile filled her entire face before she shakily took his ring in her hand.

"Remus, I could not imagine my life without you. Somehow I always knew we were tied by fate. I always looked up to you, and saw you as my safe-keeper, but I never imagined you would be my everything. Thank you for reaffirming my faith in true love, and showing me that I am worthy to be loved. You have helped me to grow, and I know that this adventure with you will be wonderful. I love you so much," Hermione told him, her eyes saying more than she could because she was very nearly speaking through soft happy sobs. She slipped the ring on his finger and he beamed.

"You may now kiss your bride Remus," Arthur smiled and Remus took his wife into his arms, kissing her passionately as everyone clapped for them. Sirius cheered the loudest, glad that his best friends in the entire world were happy.

000

8 hours later

Remus carried Hermione over the threshold of their hotel room in Paris. It was where she had wanted to go for their honeymoon and he had absolutely no objection. She was still in her wedding dress, and he was still in his tux; although they were both a little worse for wear after the raucously fun reception that had followed the wedding. They were both a little tipsy and Remus laid his new bride down on the bed before locking the door and putting up a silencing charm.

"I can't believe Sirius caught the garter," Hermione giggled.

"Oh I can, and I'm glad he did too…" Remus laughed along with her, loosening his tie before crawling onto the big plush bed with his new bride. He lay next to her, his fingers running over her bare neck and onto the necklace he had given her for her birthday, "Today was perfect."

"More than perfect," Hermione sighed contentedly.

"Are you sure you want to do this tonight? You must be exhausted…" Remus asked nervously and she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Husband…of course I do. I've waited for you to mark me long enough. I held out till today because your silly thing about Sirius being upset, but now there are no more excuses. It would be a perfect end to my wedding day, please."

"How can I say no to be gorgeous wife then?" Remus asked, leaning over her to kiss her on the lips. She couldn't even believe how lucky she was as she felt him part her lips with his tongue and slowly and sweetly taste her. She explored him back, loving that he always tasted like chocolate and pepper and really good wine. He slipped an arm around the bodice of her dress, pulling her up to him before parting from her and moving behind her on the bed.

"You are my angel" Remus whispered to her, kissing her on the back of her neck that was exposed by her now messy up-do. His fingers made their way to the first small satin button and he took his time freeing her from her dress, his hands tracing lightly down every new inch of skin he exposed before he was able to help her slip out of it entirely.

She then stood before him in only a pair of dark blue panties, her creamy skin against the fabric making her look like a goddess along with the few tendrils of hair that were escaping from the intricate twist Ginny had fastened it into earlier. Hermione reached out to him and further undid his tie, tossing it to the floor before unbuttoning his shirt in the same maddeningly slow way, but instead of her fingers, she used her lips to tease each new bit of his bare chest until he shrugged off the shirt. She made quick work of his black pants until they were both in the same state of undress. She pushed him down onto the bed, crawling on top of him and admiring him.

"Looking at you is incredible," she gushed. She was nervous and so happy and so in love at the same time. She traced light fingers over the scars on his body that only served to make him more real and more perfect. She was so happy that he could be himself with her-there was no pretense and it was sexy.

"Come here sweetheart," he grabbed her hand and pulled her down closer so she was lying on his chest. He kissed her again and soon it turned into a more passionate embrace. They were panting for each other, writhing against one another for friction and Remus moved his love so that her head was resting on the soft pillows of the bed. He moved down her body, worshipping every inch of her until he got to the lace surrounding one of his favorite parts of her. He tugged the knickers down and began to lick slowly up her folds, tasting her sweetness as she moaned softly, her hips twitching and her hands tugging gently at his sandy hair. When he had teased her until he was sure he was going to break, he moved back up her soft, pale body to meet her mouth again as he tugged off his boxers.

Remus slowly eased himself inside of her and she wrapped her arms around his neck as they fell into a slow rhythm that allowed them to savor every sensation of their lovemaking. His kisses moved from her lips to her neck and down to the soft spot over her left breast, right above her heart. She tensed under his touch and he broke away from her.

"Are you sure? I don't have to..." he asked her, still slowly pumping in and out of her.

"No please, I need you to, just hold me…" Hermione said bravely, but she was still nervous. He moved back to kissing her beasts and then back to the spot where he wanted to mark her. Without any more warning, Hermione suddenly felt a hot flash of pain at that spot but Remus continued to kiss there, even though he had just bitten down and broken the skin.

But as they made love, things seemed so much more different. It was like the world had more color to it, and that everything was calm and happy and would forever remain that way. Hermione felt more than connected to Remus, she felt a part of him. Their souls connected in an ancient and mystic bond that could never be fully understood. They came together, both holding onto each other tightly and calling out for one another, with orgasms that rocked them to the core. They collapsed into the bed, panting, and smiled as Remus reached over to touch the bite above her breast.

The wound was slowly fading, and within a few moments, it was but a semi-circle scar and right above it appeared the ancient rune for 'eternal love', the exact one inscribed on her necklace. It would stay there forever, as a permanent, magical tattoo and they were both in shock that the rune had been that one.

Werewolf lore told that many numbers of runes could appear above the scar of the one marked, and they both knew that the appearance of this one only solidified more their happy fate.

"I love you, Mrs. Lupin," Remus said, looking into her eyes—his wife's eyes—his mate's eyes.

"And I you, eternally," she smiled.

000

2 years later

"Siri! Put Sophie down! You know 'Mione doesn't trust you with her yet…" Emily, his very steady girlfriend, yelled at him when she walked into the living room of his apartment and found he had taken Sophie out of her crib.

"Shhh! She trusts me just fine…"

"She's a new mother, she doesn't trust anyone," Emily chided Sirius but then planted a very sweet kiss on his cheek and he smiled, carefully placing baby Sophie Lupin back into her crib. Remus and Hermione had come over for a visit, but the new mother of the three month old had been so exhausted that she had decided to nap with her husband in the guest bedroom Sirius still kept.

Emily and Sirius stayed by the crib, watching the beautiful baby giggle up at them happily. Sirius couldn't have been happier. Emily had come into his life a year after Remus and Hermione had been married. He had just run into her at the Leaky, and started up a conversation with her. He had never seen her before, but something about her just captivated him and he had come to terms with the loss of Hermione long before.

She had long auburn hair that fell to the middle of her back and grey eyes—a stunning combination. She was voluptuous and spunky, and she was always giving Sirius shit. She challenged him and he loved it. But she had kept him tame too, in the vein that Hermione had started before. They were perfect for each other, and Sirius couldn't wait to make her his wife soon.

It had taken a little while for Hermione to warm up to Emily. She knew she had no right to be jealous of the woman-who was sweet and beautiful and much closer to Sirius' age-and yet there was that little pang for a few months. Sirius and Hermione had become more than closer, the best of friends, and she would always love him, but her undying devotion to Remus prevented that jealous pang from lasting too long.

Soon Emily and Hermione were fast friends, and both couples hung out regularly, with Ginny and Harry as well, who had had their first child; James, a few months before. And Sirius couldn't have been more in love with Sophie. He spoiled her rotten and she had captured his heart instantly. He took every moment he could to play with her and hold her, even if Hermione protested. She was a nervous mother and Remus found it most endearing.

Emily and Sirius both turned when they heard the loud yawn behind them. Remus held Hermione's hand as she walked into the living room, looking sleepy but happy. She walked to the crib immediately and grabbed up her little baby.

"I love our perfect family," Hermione smiled, kissing her darling baby girl on the head as she looked at her husband and Sirius and his new love. Everyone was happy. Little Sophie reached up with her pudgy little hand to touch the exposed rune above Hermione's breast and Remus looked on, overjoyed at the beauty of his wife and daughter together. It was a beautiful thing.

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed! I am thinking about writing a Sirius/Hermione story for all of you that wanted this to go the other way, thoughts? I can't believe this story is over! Wow!