A/N - All right everyone. Here is the last chapter of Lost and Found. This is not the end, however, the third and final story in this series, Resolution, will hopefully start being posted on New Years Eve. It will span 6th and 7th years. I hope you enjoy this one and I thank all of you profusely for reading, favoriting and most of all reviewing! To all of those who will be celebrating, Merry Christmas and I hope to see everyone back next week for the new story! Reviews make great Christmas presents! ;)

Chapter 45

More Questions, Few Answers

29 August 1996

She was awoken by a small kiss on her forehead. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up to see Sirius sitting on the table in front of the couch. He smiled at her and ran a hand through her hair.

"Long day?" he asked. Catherine stretched and yawned and gave him a sleepy grin.

"Extremely," she said. "Is Harry all right?" A look of irritation flashed quickly across Sirius' face.

"He's fine," Sirius finally said.

"Sirius," Catherine chided.

"I promise I'll tell you about it later," Sirius said. "When we've got a bit more privacy."

"How was your meeting then?" she asked. Another look, this one Catherine couldn't quite read. "Let me guess, also for later?" He nodded and she sighed.

"Do you know what's going on with Winky then?" Catherine asked, trying to find a topic neutral enough to be discussed within earshot of the children.

"Not exactly, but I expect she's upset that we're all leaving," Sirius replied.

"Oh," Catherine said, forgetting just how much Winky wanted to feel needed.

"What do you think about having her come to the house while the kids are in school?" Sirius asked.

"I don't know Sirius," Catherine said. "I mean this was a lovely holiday and all, but I don't think my mother would like being ordered out of her own kitchen on a regular basis." Sirius nodded. "What about Grimmauld?"

"What about it?" Sirius nearly snapped. Catherine's eyes narrowed a bit. "Sorry," he said. "I've had a long day too." She took his hand and gave it a squeeze.

"I know you hate it there and I'm not suggesting we move back in," she said. "But, it is protected with nearly every charm and ward known to wizard-kind. If we did need a place to go for some reason, it would be nice if it weren't so dirty and depressing." Sirius pursed his lips in thought.

"Cleaning it up and making it livable for children would keep Winky very busy and with the Order meetings, she'd get to cook on occasion," Catherine continued. "Although she might have to wrestle Molly for it." Sirius laughed.

"I suppose that could work," Sirius said. "But I don't want you to think as if we're going to live there someday."

"I know," she said. "But what if we needed a place to keep Harry safe? Or any of us really? I wouldn't want a baby or a toddler in that place, as it looks now."

"All right," Sirius agreed. "I'll speak with her after supper."

"Good," Catherine said, sitting up and kissing him. There was a small pop and Winky appeared in front of them. Her ears drooped and her eyes seemed glassy. Catherine saw a few stains on her normally impeccably clean toga and she glanced at Sirius in concern. Sirius nodded.

"Supper is served, Master, Mistress," Winky said miserably. Before she could disappear again, Sirius put a hand on her arm.

"Winky," he said.

"Yes, Master?" Winky replied.

"You know that we're leaving tomorrow," Sirius said. Winky's ears drooped further.

"Yes, Master," she said sadly.

"Once you've gotten the cottage closed up for the winter, would you like to come and work for me at another of my houses?" Sirius asked. Winky's ears perked up.

"With Master and Mistress and little Mistress?" Winky asked. She was quite fond of Miranda.

"No, Winky, another property of mine," Sirius said, not correcting the elf on her assumption that Catherine's house belonged to Sirius. Winky sagged slightly, but still looked interested.

"It is the house where Kreacher once worked," Sirius continued. Winky's mouth curled into a grimace at the mention of Kreacher's name.

"Kreacher is a bad elf," she stated. Catherine bit back a smirk.

"Yes, he is," Sirius agreed. "And as such, he let the house get into a state of extreme disrepair and filth. It has been cleaned up a bit, but I would like you to completely renovate the place. Children may live there, so we want it to be up to a high standard." Winky had slowly been straightening as Sirius spoke, throwing her shoulders back and concentrating on his words. "What say you?"

"Yes, Master," Winky said with a nod of her head. "Winky would be honored to continue to serve the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black." She bowed low and Catherine saw her wave her hand at her toga so when she stood, the garment was pristinely white once again.

"Very good," Sirius replied. "Once we've gotten the children off to school, I will call for you and explain just exactly I would like done. Will you have enough time to close up the cottage in that time?"

"Of course Master," Winky said, her small face beaming. "Winky will be getting the children for supper." She snapped her fingers and disappeared. Catherine smiled at Sirius.

"Well there's one problem solved," she said brightly.

"If only they were all that easy," Sirius muttered. Before Catherine could question him, he stood, holding out a hand to pull her up from the couch. "Come on love, let's get some food into you." He kissed her cheek and led her to the dining room, Catherine too tired to protest his abrupt change of subject.

Once everyone was in bed, Sirius and Catherine made their way to their own bedroom. Catherine was too exhausted to sit out on the terrace, so the two of them readied themselves for bed and then climbed in. Catherine snuggled into Sirius' side where he was propped up against the headboard.

"Are you going to tell me now?" she asked.

"Which bit?" he returned.

"Whichever you want to start with," Catherine said. Sirius sighed.

"I spoke to Washburn," he began. "He has no idea what Hargrove is thinking because he is no longer his solicitor."

"What?" Catherine exclaimed sitting up. A myriad of thoughts were flying through her mind, none of them good.

"Washburn doesn't think that he knows about the two of us being together now," Sirius said. "Hargrove saw Washburn's name in the Prophet in relation to the article about my name being cleared. I'm sure because of our relationship when we were students, Hargrove decided just to play it safe."

"A bit paranoid isn't he?" Catherine asked, trying to slow her pounding heartbeat.

"Most pureblood Slytherins are," he said with a shrug. "Most Slytherins in general, for that matter. I probably would be too, if I were in his shoes. He knows that in five short years, he's going to lose control of his wife's fortune. And if everything I've heard recently is true, Hargrove went into that marriage with hardly anything of his own, save properties which he either can't or doesn't want to sell. Apparently, old man Hargrove had a bit of a gambling problem."

"What's to prevent him from transferring assets or something, so that there's nothing left for Rory when he does come of age?" Catherine asked. She was well versed in muggle ways of hiding money, off-shore accounts being the most popular. Sirius, however, was shaking his head.

"He can't," Sirius said. "It's the way the magic works, not to mention Gringotts' meticulous record-keeping. And he can't just go out and spend it all either. I'm sure he's on a monthly allowance himself. Even though he controls the money, he doesn't have free reign because he's not a direct heir. Rory, on the other hand, will have direct control of everything once he comes of age and he can do with it as he likes." Catherine rubbed her forehead tiredly. It was hard to imagine the boy who had just been teasing his sister earlier today being in charge of that much wealth.

"Merlin help us if he doesn't mature any," she said and Sirius chuckled.

"Don't worry, love, we'll help him along," he said.

"Still, I don't like being in the dark like this Sirius," she said, leaning back against him.

"Nor do I, but unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about it right now," he said. "Washburn isn't very happy."

"Why not?" she asked.

"He lost a huge client," Sirius said. "Not as big as me, but still."

"I'm sure he'll get over it," Catherine said dryly. "He didn't seem to be suffering too much to me." Sirius snorted. They sat quietly for a few moments, Sirius playing idly with a strand of her hair.

"Now what about Harry?" Catherine finally asked. Sirius sighed again.

"He's still on about Malfoy," Sirius said.

"Draco?" Catherine asked and Sirius grunted in acknowledgement. "What about?"

"He's convinced that Draco's a Death Eater," Sirius said. Catherine sat up again and looked at Sirius incredulously.

"How on earth did he come to that conclusion?" she asked. Sirius just shook his head.

"Something about Draco not wanting Madame Malkin to touch his left arm," he said. "And when they followed him to Borgin and Burkes, Draco apparently showed something to Borgin that scared the hell out of him."

"Did Harry see Draco show Borgin his arm?" Catherine asked.

"No, that's the thing," Sirius said. "He has no idea at all what Draco showed him. It could have been anything."

"Besides, Draco's only sixteen. Surely Voldemort wouldn't let him join before he's of age?" Catherine questioned.

"Well, I doubt old Voldy-shorts cares much about a little thing like age, but Draco would be a bit of a liability given the restriction on underage magic. Only if he's not around any other wizards of course," Sirius said. "This isn't likely, but possible."

"So Harry's convinced that Draco is a Death Eater," Catherine recounted. "What else?"

"Well the whole thing with Draco telling Borgin to keep whatever it was safe and wanting to know how to fix another one like it," Sirius said. "Harry wants the Ministry or the Order to raid the shop."

"But if you don't know what it is that Draco was referring to, how will you find it?" Catherine asked.

"Exactly," Sirius said. "Besides, Draco will be at school in a couple of days. We know that even with the Mark, you can't apparate into or out of Hogwarts. Snape still has to go to the gates before he can answer a summons. I'm sure Snape will keep an eye on Draco." Catherine gaped in astonishment. "What?"

"You just expressed confidence in Severus," she pointed out. Sirius shrugged a shoulder.

"I told you I was going to try," he said. "Besides, most of what happened between us in school wasn't his fault. If James and I hadn't picked on him on the train that first day maybe things would have been different." He looked off into the distance, a bit of pain in his eyes.

"Maybe," Catherine said. "But somehow I don't think that the four of you would have ever been friendly with him."

"No, but we didn't have to be such complete wankers," Sirius said quietly. "Me especially." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and rested her forehead near his temple. There wasn't anything she could really say to him when he began brooding like this and truthfully, she didn't think that she should just automatically absolve him of his guilt. He had done incredibly stupid, sometimes incredibly dangerous, things to Severus. And while it was all in the past and they were both grown men now and while those actions probably did not actually push Severus onto the path he eventually took, they may have nudged him closer to it all the same.

After a few minutes he sighed and she kissed his cheek. He reached over and took her hand, interlacing their fingers.

"I just want to be a better man for my daughter," he said quietly. "For all of them."

"You already are," she said with a smile, leaning over to kiss him properly. She resumed her earlier position once they'd parted, her head now resting on his shoulder. "So what did you say to Harry?"

"I told him not to try anything on his own," Sirius said. "That if he saw anything suspicious to find a teacher or let one of us know."

"I can imagine his response to that," Catherine said and Sirius snorted.

"There was a lot of glowering," he admitted.

"It's going to take time Sirius," Catherine reminded him. "He's really had no one to count on, save Ron and Hermione, for most of his life."

"I realize that, believe me I do," he said. "I just don't want him going and doing something stupid in the meantime."

"I know," she replied. She tried to hold back a yawn.

"You're exhausted," he said.

"No, I'm fine," she replied, this time unsuccessful in her efforts. He kissed the top of her head.

"Sleep, love," he said. "We'll talk more tomorrow." Sirius scooted down in the bed, pulling Catherine with him. She settled herself into his side, her head on his chest and he waved his wand to put out the lights. Yawning one more time, her eyes fluttered shut and she drifted off to sleep with Sirius' lips in her hair.

31 August 1996

"Is everyone packed?" Catherine asked, as they sat down to dinner that night. Given the growing size of their family with the addition of Edward, Sirius and Harry, they had taken to eating in the dining room. Jane had outdone herself with the food, cooking a bit of each of the children's favorites.

"I am Mum," Ellie said as she spooned potatoes onto her plate.

"I am too," Harry answered. Rory said nothing.

"Rory?" Catherine prodded. He glanced up at his mother nervously.

"I'm, er, almost done," he said. Catherine raised an eyebrow in his direction. Ellie rolled her eyes.

"If by 'almost done' you mean that half of your closet and your entire desk is on the floor, then yes, I'd say you're almost done," she quipped.

"Shut up," Rory mumbled.

"After dinner young man, you are in that room until it's cleaned up and your trunk is packed, understood?" Catherine said briskly.

"Yes, Mum," Rory replied with a sigh. Everyone ate in silence for a few minutes.

"I wonder who the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is going to be," Ellie mused.

"Oh, I met him," Harry said. All eyes turned to Harry.

"You did?" Sirius asked. "When?"

"Professor Dumbledore took me to meet him just before he brought me to, er, your house last month," Harry explained. Catherine looked at Sirius wide-eyed. The two of them had no idea that Albus had taken Harry anywhere other than directly from Privet Drive to Grimmauld Place.

"Why did he take you along?" Sirius asked his jaw tightening slightly.

"Dunno," Harry said with a shrug. "I think to help convince the professor to come back or something."

"So who is it Harry?" Rory asked.

"Professor Slughorn," Harry said.

"What's he like?" Ellie asked. Catherine turned to Sirius and gave him a look. The three children began to discuss Professor Slughorn and his possible prowess as a Defense teacher.

"Slughorn?" Catherine said quietly so only Sirius could hear. "He's a potions master." Sirius nodded.

"And while I'm sure he could fight if he had to, I think old Sluggy is better at hiding and disguises than dueling," Sirius replied, just as quietly.

"And we already have a more than adequate Potions professor," Catherine continued with a glance at the children to make sure they were still occupied with their own conversation.

"Which means," Sirius said, trailing off as his eyes widened. "He's finally gone and given it to him." Catherine hid a smirk as she imagined the students' reactions when they found their potions master in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.

"Should we tell them?" she asked, indicating Ellie, Rory and Harry with a nod of her head.

"Absolutely not," Sirius said with an evil looking grin. "This is too perfect."

"I think it should disturb me a lot more than it does that you're excited about torturing your godson like that," Catherine said with a small laugh. Sirius grinned at her and leaned over and kissed her.

"Ew, do you have to do that at the table?" Rory groused. Sirius released Catherine and turned to Rory.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do," Sirius smirked. "The table, the couch, the chair, the kitchen, the,

"Okay, okay, stop," Rory said interrupting. "I don't need to know everywhere you snog. Ugh." Catherine slapped Sirius lightly on the arm, although she wasn't all that upset with him. She loved the easy way he could tease her children. Rory went to take another bite of his food and then pushed his plate away in disgust.

"Thanks a lot," he said dejectedly.

"All in a day's work son, all in a day's work," Sirius replied with a grin, taking a sip of his wine. Harry chuckled and Ellie bit back a smile. Rory gave Sirius a disgusted look and Sirius laughed, but Catherine's grin faded. There was something off about his expression.

"May I be excused?" he said sullenly.

"Don't you want pudding?" Jane asked in surprise.

"No, I lost my appetite," Rory said. Even Sirius' grin began to falter now. He looked at Catherine in concern.

"Yes, you can be excused to go and finish your packing," Catherine said and Rory stood from the table, shoving his chair back towards it. He stalked from the room and they all soon heard him stomping noisily up the stairs.

"I'm sorry, I was just teasing," Sirius said. "I didn't mean to upset him."

"It's not your fault," she said. "He's overreacting." Sirius stood and dropped his napkin on the table.

"I'll go talk to him," he said. Catherine put a hand on his arm.

"No, just let him be for a little while," she said. "I'll talk to him later." Sirius looked at her a bit uncertainly. She gave him a reassuring smile and he sat back down with a sigh. Harry and Ellie looked at each other in confusion.

"Miranda," Catherine said and the little girl looked up at her mother. While Rory and Ellie were close, Miranda was the one most likely to know if anyone did. "Do you know why Rory is so upset?" Miranda shrugged.

"He doesn't like it when Sirius calls him son," she said matter-of-factly. "He doesn't like it when Granddad says it either, but it doesn't make him as mad."

"Why not?" Catherine asked as Sirius and Edward exchanged a glance.

"Because Sirius isn't his dad," Miranda said as if this were completely obvious. "Granddad isn't either." When she finished speaking, Miranda went back to her plate and finished her vegetables as if nothing had happened. She then turned to her grandmother. "Grandma, can we have pudding now?"

"Of course sweetheart," Jane said. "Why don't the three of you help me clear away the plates?" The children all rose and began stacking the plates up to carry them to the kitchen. Catherine was quite sure that her mother would keep them there for a bit.

"I had no idea," Edward said once they'd gone.

"I know he got upset when I called him that at the cottage, but I thought it was in reaction to the baby news," Sirius said, running a hand through his hair.

"I don't understand why he's so upset about it all of a sudden," Catherine added. "Both Ian and Remus have called him 'son' on more than one occasion and he's never said a word about it."

"You and I weren't married then, nor we were going to have a baby," Sirius pointed out.

"Still, that doesn't explain why he doesn't like it when Edward calls him that," Catherine replied. All three fell silent. Catherine rubbed her forehead tiredly with her fingertips. "I'll talk to him after we're finished eating." Sirius put a hand on her back and began to rub it lightly as Jane and the children came back into the room laden down with sweets.

Catherine knocked quietly at the door of Rory's room. When there was no answer from within, she sighed and knocked again.

"Rory, it's Mum," she said.

"Fine, come in," he mumbled from inside. Catherine opened the door and stepped in. His room was still a bit of a mess, but at least all the clothes were off the floor and mostly into his trunk. Rory was sitting on the floor sorting through a pile of paper and parchment. She cleared a space on his bed and sat down on the edge.

"I think we need to talk about what's going on with you," she said. Rory sighed.

"It's nothing Mum," he said in irritation.

"I disagree," she replied. "It most obviously is something if it's gotten you this upset." Rory muttered something under his breath and crumpled up the paper that was in his hand. Catherine rose from the bed and knelt beside him. "Sweetheart, look at me please." Rory finally raised his head, but he had a scowl on his face. "Miranda said something about you not liking it when Sirius and Granddad call you 'son'. Is that true?"

"Should have known she couldn't keep her mouth shut," Rory grumbled. Catherine was a bit surprised, but chose to ignore it for the moment.

"I take it that means it's true," Catherine prodded.

"Yeah, so," Rory said with a shrug.

"Why does it bother you so much?" she asked. Rory gave her a withering look.

"Obviously because neither of them are my father," he said slowly as if explaining to a small child.

"I don't appreciate your attitude," Catherine said, trying not to get angry. Rory shrugged again.

"I guess it's a good thing I'm going back to school tomorrow then," he said flippantly. Catherine rose from the floor, knowing that if she didn't leave the room, she would say something that she regretted.

"I can see that it's no use trying to talk to you about this with the mood that you're in," she said. "Once you've finished packing you can join the rest of us as long as you adjust your attitude." She turned to leave the room and as she reached the door heard Rory mutter something else. It sounded suspiciously like 'don't hold your breath'. Catherine opened the door and turned back to her son who was still sitting on the floor.

"You know, I really don't want to ruin your last night home fighting like this," she said softly. She thought she detected the slightest slump in his shoulders, but after a second it was gone. Rory said nothing, just continued to sort through his parchments. Catherine looked at him sadly and then quietly closed the door behind her.

She made her way into the kitchen where her mother was finishing cleaning things up from supper. Everyone else was watching a movie in the lounge.

"Is he all right?" Jane asked as Catherine sat down at the kitchen table.

"I don't think so, but he won't tell me anything, so I have no real idea," Catherine said.

"Do you want me to try talking to him?" Jane questioned.

"I don't know Mum," Catherine said with a sigh, putting her face in her hands. Jane set down the pan she had been drying and sat down next to Catherine, putting an arm around her.

"He'll be fine," Jane said soothingly. "Once he gets back into the routine of school and is around all his friends, he'll be back to his old self."

"I hope you're right," Catherine said leaning her head on her mother's shoulder. "I just hate leaving things this way."

"It will look better in the morning," Jane said, giving her shoulder a squeeze. "It always does."

"Ever the optimist," Catherine said with a smile.

"Someone has to be," Jane quipped. Catherine chuckled.

"Thanks Mum," Catherine said. Jane kissed the top of her head.

"Anytime darling," she replied, then rose to finish cleaning up. "Go and join your husband, I'll finish up here."

"Are you sure?" Catherine asked, feeling a bit guilty about not helping with anything.

"Positive," Jane said. "Now go." Catherine left the room, joining the rest of the family in front of the telly. Sirius looked up at her as she walked in and whispered something to Miranda who was sitting on his lap. She nodded and got up, walking over to Harry and climbing into his lap instead. Catherine smiled as Harry automatically adjusted her so she was in a comfortable position, his eyes never leaving the screen.

Catherine sank down on the couch next to Sirius, his arm wrapping around her and pulling her close to him. He kissed her temple and she settled her head on his shoulder, grateful that he didn't ask her any questions. She turned her gaze to the film, one they'd all seen before, but enjoyed nonetheless. It was easy to get lost in the story and ignore everything else for a short while.

When the film was over, Rory still hadn't made an appearance. Catherine glanced over and saw that Miranda was nearly asleep on Harry's lap. Jane chuckled.

"I'll take her up," she said. "Come on Miranda, let's get you to bed." She pulled gently on Miranda's arm to try and extricate her from Harry's lap. Miranda responded by yawning and snuggling tighter into Harry. Catherine grinned at Harry's near panicked expression as he had no idea what to do with the little girl. Edward came to his rescue.

"Up you get, little miss," he said, picking Miranda up off Harry's lap. Miranda wrapped her arms and legs around Edward's torso like a monkey. "Say good night to your mother and Sirius," Edward instructed. Miranda half-heartedly waved a hand at them.

"Good night, baby," Catherine said. Edward walked toward the stairs, Jane trailing behind him to help Miranda into her pajamas. Ellie rose from her spot on the floor and stretched.

"I'm going up to bed too Mum," she said. She crossed the room and kissed her mother's cheek and then, to his surprise, Sirius' as well. "Night."

"Good night sweetheart," Catherine said.

"Good night Ellie," Sirius echoed with a wide smile on his face.

"Do you want me to check on Rory?" Ellie asked just before she left the room.

"It's probably better just to leave him be for now," Catherine said with a sight. Ellie nodded and disappeared up the stairs.

"I can try and talk to him," Harry said. Catherine looked up at him in surprise. "I mean, I think I sort of know how he feels." He colored slightly and looked up at Catherine through his fringe, undoubtedly remembering the way he found out about her and Sirius. Catherine gave him a reassuring smile. "Plus, being in the same room as him and all, makes it kind of hard not to." Sirius laughed a bit. The boys were sharing Rory's room.

"I'd appreciate that Harry," Catherine said. "Just be sure that he knows that whatever he tells you stays between the two of you. I don't want him to think you're reporting back to us."

"Sure Catherine," he said. Harry stood and looked at the two of them a bit awkwardly. Sirius rose and gave him a quick hug. Harry then leaned forward and hugged Catherine as well.

"Good night," he said as he too went upstairs.

"So I take it things didn't go so well then," Sirius said once they were alone.

"No," Catherine said. "He's not acting like himself."

"He's had quite the summer," Sirius pointed out.

"Yes, that's true," Catherine replied, snuggling into him again. "But the girls and Harry have had the same summer and they aren't acting this way."

"Harry's had his moments," Sirius reminded her.

"Harry also has a bit more on his shoulders than Rory does," Catherine returned.

"Point," Sirius agreed. "Speaking of Harry, what about this little errand Albus took him on?"

"You remember how Slughorn was," Catherine said. "The Slug Club and all. He recruited you pretty heavily." Sirius curled his lip in disgust.

"It was worse after he got Regulus to join," Sirius said.

"And wasn't Lily a part of it?" Catherine asked. Sirius nodded. "I suppose that's why Albus took Harry then. Slughorn must have been reluctant to come back," Catherine mused.

"I don't like it," Sirius said, an edge to his voice. "He's exploiting Harry's fame for his own ends."

"I don't like it either," Catherine agreed. "We'll have to talk to him about it at the next meeting."

"You could talk to him sooner," Sirius said. "Aren't you going to the Feast tomorrow?"

"I hadn't decided," Catherine admitted. "But I will if you want me to."

"It's up to you," Sirius said in concern. "I don't want you to overtire yourself." He brushed a hair off her face. "But if you do go, you can see everyone's reaction to Snape being made Defense teacher and then describe it to me in detail." Catherine laughed.

"I'll see how things go and decide tomorrow," she said. Sirius kissed her forehead as Edward and Jane came back into the room.

"Miranda's all tucked in," Jane said. "I checked on Rory and he's nearly finished with his room."

"Did he say anything?" Catherine asked. Jane shook her head. Catherine sighed. "Thanks Mum."

"I'll say my goodbyes," Edward said. Catherine and Sirius both rose, Catherine hugging Edward and Sirius shaking his hand. "Thank you for the wonderful holiday this summer."

"No thanks necessary," Sirius replied. "Any time you want to use the cottage, just let me know."

"I just may take you up on that," Edward said, winking at Sirius. Sirius gave him a knowing smile. "Good luck getting the children to the train in the morning."

"Thank you Edward," Catherine said. "We'll see you soon." He nodded and Jane left to walk him to the door.

"What was all that about?" Catherine demanded once they'd gone.

"All what?" Sirius replied innocently.

"The wink, the smile," Catherine prodded.

"Can't tell you," Sirius said. "But I promise you, you'll like it." Catherine's eyes narrowed, but she didn't ask anything else. She had a relatively good idea what it was anyway. Her mother returned a few minutes later.

"I think I'll turn in myself," she said. "I'm still on Miranda duty in the morning, yes?"

"If you don't mind," Catherine said. "There are Aurors meeting us at the station, but I'll still be more comfortable if both Sirius and I are there." Miranda was starting school tomorrow as well.

"Of course dear," Jane said. "I'll see you in the morning then." After hugging her mother good night, Catherine sank back down on the couch, Sirius beside her.

"Are you still planning on meeting Winky at Grimmauld after we drop the children at the train?" Catherine asked. She herself had to go into work directly afterward.

"Yes," Sirius said. "I'm a bit curious to see if Harry's handiwork on my mother's portrait is still intact." He smirked. There hadn't been any Order meetings for a few weeks. Albus had some mysterious errands and was also busy readying for the new school year, so they had no idea if Harry's hex had been a permanent one or not.

"I wonder if Winky could do something with her if it's worn off," Catherine mused.

"I just hope she can do something with the house elf heads," Sirius said with a shudder.

"You've tried to take them down?" Catherine asked.

"Of course I have," Sirius said. "It's one of the first things I tried to get rid of after that blasted portrait. Seems a similar charm has been used on them." Catherine shook her head.

"After I get Winky started, I'm going to go into the Ministry," Sirius continued. Catherine held back a sigh. "The sooner I can finish whatever training they want me to do, the sooner I can get back to work." Catherine simply nodded and Sirius kissed the top of her head. They sat in silence for a few moments.

"Tired?" Sirius asked as Catherine stifled a yawn.

"Aren't I always these days?" she asked ruefully. Sirius smiled and ran a hand across her stomach.

"Come on, let's get you up to bed." Sirius wrapped an arm around her shoulders and Catherine leaned into him as they made their way upstairs. When they'd reached the top, Catherine stopped outside Rory's door. She stepped forward and pressed her ear against it, hearing low murmuring coming from inside. She couldn't make out the words, but she could hear two distinct voices and was happy that Rory was talking to someone at least. For all she knew, they were discussing Quidditch, but at least he was talking. She sighed and Sirius took her hand, leading her to their bedroom.

They readied themselves for bed and Catherine climbed in first, Sirius joining her a few moments later.

"Cat, I can hear your mind working form here," Sirius joked as he sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Sorry," Catherine said with a sigh. "It's just this feeling I can't seem to shake."

"Feeling about what?" he asked, brow furrowing.

"Nothing, everything, I don't know," she said in exasperation, flopping on to her back. She turned her head to look at him. "I feel like something's going to happen, I just don't know what." Sirius' expression turned solemn.

"I think we can all but guarantee that something's going to happen," he said. "We are at war."

"I know, but that's not what I meant exactly," she replied. She shook her head. "It feels more," she waved her hand vaguely around. "Personal."

"Personal how?" Sirius questioned.

"That's the thing, I don't know," Catherine exclaimed, throwing her hands up and letting them flop down on the bed again. Sirius finally lay down beside her and gathered her into his arms. He kissed her hairline and she buried her face in his neck.

"I won't tell you it's all right," he said quietly. "Because obviously we both know it isn't. But whatever happens, we'll get through it." She clutched him tighter.

"I wish we hadn't had to leave the cottage," she said, her voice muffled. "I wish we could have stayed in our little bubble, where the biggest thing we had to worry about was Ellie snogging her boyfriend in secret." Sirius chuckled.

"Me too, love, me too," he said. Catherine sighed into his neck and he kissed her temple.

"It's late, you're exhausted," he said, rubbing her back. "Just sleep and everything will look better in the morning." Catherine snorted.

"You sound like my mum," she said.

"I've told you your mother is a wise woman," Sirius quipped. Catherine laughed a bit. She pulled back a little and kissed him.

"I love you," she said.

"I love you too," he returned. "Try not to worry too much. I know it's difficult, but try. For me?" She nodded and laid her head on his chest.

Long after Sirius had fallen asleep, Catherine lay awake, her mind unwilling or unable to relax. Something was coming, she could feel it. Something with the war, surely, but something else as well. And no matter what Sirius said or what reassurances he tried to give her, she had a very strong feeling she wasn't going to like it when it hit.