[ I know I don't have to explain myself bc it's my book, but I'm gonna for everyone's peace of mind:

I genuinely am leaning away from Val and Remus being endgame because he did take advantage of her having a crush on him when he was her teacher which is bad. Like as an adult, I know it's bad and I made it happen on purpose. And I think it'll show a lot of growth for both of them to move on and Val to realize that they're capable of being friends in spite of sleeping with each other.

as for what I was testing the waters with, I'm not talking a full on relationship between them. very plainly, I mean a one time threesome for fun after SEVERAL chapters of Ivy and Remus getting closer (even tho they are already close and she trusts him), because we know my baby is too shy for that right now even if it did happen.

like yeah I want it bc I'm a slut for wolfstar and the OG plot for this book had them all together, but I also genuinely think Sirius and Ivy could help him learn to love himself and be more comfortable in his own skin, because there's no one he trusts more than them.

in the end, though, it would still just be Siri and Ivy together in a happy healthy loving relationship and Remus just a little bit better off with it having happened. plus I just love the thought of them teasing her the next day and imagine how flustered she'd get and she wouldn't be able to believe how unbelievably calm they are about everything.

anyway, yeah. that's my thoughts and this chapter is more just testing the waters — nothing is set in stone yet ]

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I'M GOING TO ASK YOU A HARD QUESTION.

ALL OF A SUDDEN, 12 Grimmauld Place, a home that had always been so dark and empty, was now as full of life and people. The Weasleys seemingly never left, always keeping Harry, Ivy, and Sirius company. And they were so helpful — even if Molly was forcing her children to be so. The summer was going to be spent cleaning every inch of the place, and even with the help of magic, it would take ages.

Kreacher was all too happy to be back at his real home, though he still muttered insults to nearly everyone but Ivy as he aided them in cleaning. And Dobby was having the time of his life, so excited to be helping so many important wizards of his own free will. Both were making the most progress in cleaning the house, as none of the kids were enthusiastic.

Though after Ivy was bitten a few too many times by Doxies hiding in the curtains, she wasn't exactly motivated to clean either. Which wasn't a problem anyway, as she was still in dueling lessons, which had been moved to the attic. Val was far too busy as an Auror to aid Remus and Sirius in teaching her, but they kept at it, making little bits of progress each day. And occasionally, the kids would sit in on the lessons since Hogwarts didn't have a proper dueling club — something Remus planned to rectify when he returned.

And on one wretched occasion, Snape invited himself up to the attic to give his opinion on her progress while also teaching her the counter curse to the spell of his own making that'd been used on her in the graveyard. It ended with Sirius cursing him out while Remus held him back and Ivy sat on the old, unused mattress in the corner, crying while surrounded by junk, convinced she'd never be a good duelist — that it was her own fault she got kidnapped.

"Don't listen to a word he says, Ivy," Remus said, coming to sit next to her as Sirius silently glared at the closed door leading out of the attic that Snape had slammed shut. "You're making great progress."

"Am not," she mumbled, hiding her face in her hands. "He's right — I'm absolutely useless. I'm stupid."

"Look at me, Sweetheart," Remus said softly, knowing she needed comfort. And when Ivy didn't budge, he carefully pulled her hands away from her tear-filled eyes. She opted to stare at his nose rather than really look at him though. "You are one of the smartest witches I've ever met and you are anything but stupid."

"But I can't fight like you and Siri can," she mumbled, sniffing a little.

"So what?" he scoffed. "Sirius couldn't turn a rat into a teacup."

"Well, I mean, I could," Sirius muttered, crossing his arms. "With some... assistance."

Ivy giggled, which was exactly what Remus wanted, happy that she was smiling once again. Both he and Sirius had wanted to wring Snape's neck for making her cry.

"And I'm rubbish at potions," Remus told her. "Everyone has their strengths, Ivy. You will get better at this with practice."

"But I can't be of any use until I do," she muttered, her mood falling again. Already, people were being sent out to gather intel.

"I don't think that's a bad thing," Sirius said under his breath, still on the fence about her helping.

Remus' attempts at cheering Ivy up were interrupted by the attic door opening, Val letting herself in. And to their surprise, Viktor Krum was behind her, looking around the dimly lit space with interest.

"Oh, now I see why Snape's got his robes in a wad," Val said, seeing the pissed look on Sirius' face and the tears in Ivy's eyes. "Don't know what he did, but he's a git, you know."

"If you're here to help me duel, it's a lost cause," Ivy said, sighing sadly.

"No, it's not, Flufflepuff," Val said. "And Viktor is visiting from Bulgaria. He can help you. Thought I'd show him around before he meets with Dumbledore."

Ivy wiped her eyes and quickly stood, smiling at Val's... boyfriend? "It's lovely to see you again, Viktor."

"You as well, Ivy," he spoke with a thick accent. "What spell are you working on?"

"Confringo," she said, the tips of her ears heating up. She'd failed to produce more than a puff of smoke and a small spark. Sirius and Remus hadn't even had to use Aguamenti once.

"Ah," he nodded. "It helps to think of something that makes you wrathful — in my experience, anyway."

"She's not a very wrathful person," Val teased. "C'mon, you lot. Molly is making lunch. Unless you want to stay up here and cry. If that's the option, I'll go kick Snape's arse for you."

"No," Ivy said, wiping her eyes. "I'm - I'm okay." Then she looked down at Remus, who was still sitting on the mattress. "And I'm not stupid."

"Good," he nodded while rising to his full height. "Go on. Lessons over for the day."

Ivy smiled and then went over to talk with Val and Krum, all heading downstairs. "Viktor, I heard you turned into a shark in the Second Task. That seems so cool."

"It was easy magic — taught in our eighth year," he told her, reminding them all that Durmstrang went a year longer than Hogwarts did. With how much Ivy liked learning, she'd have loved to be at Hogwarts another year — though it'd be miserable to some people like the twins. "And Valerie tells me you're an Animagus, so I doubt you'd have any trouble."

Ivy cut her eyes to her best friend playfully. "That's supposed to be a secret."

"Please, the whole Order knows. It's how you caught Pettigrew the first time," she reminded her. "Now, I need a sandwich or I'll get what the Muggles call 'hangry'."

Viktor smiled down at her, only about an inch taller. "You ate a whole bag of crisps not ten minutes ago."

"Well, now she's got to wash it down with a sandwich," Ivy told him. "And maybe some chocolate chip cookies."

Val's eyes brightened. "You made cookies?"

Ivy just nodded and smiled. The full moon was coming, after all, so she wanted the baked goods on hand for Remus, who'd taken to staying at Grimmauld Place as well.

"Viktor, you've got to try these cookies," Val said, dragging him a little faster now. "She's a master when it comes to baking. Doesn't bloody matter if she can duel so long as she can bake."

"And she just looks so damn cute covered in flour," Sirius said, having caught up with them after waving his wand to clean up the attic. He held Ivy from behind, making her giggle as he kissed the side of her neck. Her cheeks flushed, remembering how he'd licked the chocolate frosting off her fingers that morning before carrying her upstairs where no one would bother them.

"Yes, she makes quite a mess," Remus said flatly. "One I had to clean up when I woke up this morning, as she'd abandoned it."

"Sorry," she murmured, looking at him over her shoulder. Though she didn't feel too bad as the cookies were for him. "I'll stop making them from now on if that's easier for you."

"Now, hold on just a moment. Don't get carried away."

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"I just don't see why Dray can't come over!" Harry shouted at Sirius, who was beginning to get a headache.

"Um, maybe because his parents want you dead and Ivy tortured," Sirius shot back. The boys and Ivy were the only ones in the house at the moment, thankfully, so no one heard them shouting.

"Draco isn't his parents!"

"But we've no idea the caliber of people being let into Malfoy Manor—"

"Exactly, which is why he should have somewhere to get away—"

"I said no, Harry!"

"Sirius!" Ivy said, raising her voice a bit. She hated watching them fight.

"No, Ivy," Sirius said in a firm tone. "This place is protected for a reason. If someone were to find out because we allowed Draco to visit — I can't have the guilt on my shoulders."

"Harry," Ivy said, remaining calm. "Go into the kitchen for a moment. I need to talk to Sirius."

Sirius huffed childishly as Harry did as he was told. Then Ivy moved closer, reaching for Sirius' hands. Though he was upset, he still relaxed at her touch as always.

"I'm going to ask you a hard question," she warned him.

"I'm not letting him over," he muttered.

"That night — that Christmas holiday — what would've happened if you didn't have James and his family?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. Her eyes welled with tears just thinking about the possibilities. "What would your parents have done if they'd gotten back to the study and found you still there?"

Sirius stayed silent and looked at the floor, his jaw tense. Then he replied, his voice cracking a bit. "They'd have killed me."

Ivy wrapped her arms around him in a hug, and he instantly hugged her back, craning down to rest his head on her shoulder. "Draco needs someone. He needs somewhere to get him out of that house — just like you said, there's no telling who he's forced to be around. So, please. It'll be no different than him coming to the manor last summer. You're his family too — not just them"

But things were different, he wanted to say. Draco's father was in Azkaban. Ivy had been kidnapped. Harry was nearly killed in the graveyard. Death Eaters were organizing.

But none of those points mattered, not when he had a chance to keep Draco from ending up just like the rest of their family.

"Fine," he whispered, kissing the top of Ivy's head. "Merlin, fine. Val was right to call you manipulative back in school."

"I'm not manipulative," she pouted. "I'm logical."

Sirius hummed and pulled her closer. "Suppose a hothead like me needs someone a little logical in my life."

Then he swooped down to kiss her, tongue brushing her lips. She wrapped her arms around his neck, sighing happily into the kiss as his hands ran down her sides and under the hem of her dress. Slowly, Sirius backed her into the wall, practically swallowing her whole.

"Are you two kissing?" Harry called from the kitchen, interrupting them. "Stop it. I can hear the smacking!"

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Ivy never slept well on nights of the full moon — she blamed it on Sirius not being by her side. But she knew he had to help Remus, who, even with his potions, had a hard time. And the burden on Sirius was even heavier now that he didn't have James and Peter helping him like when they were growing up.

Sirius and Remus both refused to let Ivy come with them on full moons, not caring that she was also an Animagus. But they settled on letting her help patch them up each time when they came home.

As usual, Sirius was better off than his best friend, and he was already passed out on the couch while Ivy worked on Remus as the sun was slowly rising outside. In spite of her gentle touch, he still couldn't help but wince as she cleaned a cut on his neck that was of his own doing. She'd already patched up his arms and back, which he'd been clawing at all night.

"Thank you for this," he whispered, not wanting to wake Sirius. With all his friends either dead or in Azkaban, he'd had many nights of patching himself up. He'd forgotten how nice it was to have someone like he'd had Madam Pomfrey in school.

"You know it's no trouble," she assured him, hating seeing him in pain. "And eat."

He didn't have to be told twice as he reached for another chocolate chip cookie. "You really should open a bakery — I meant that when I told you so that day you figured out about my furry little problem."

She giggled quietly as he used the term James had come up with in their youth. "I like that term," she told him, dipping her rag back into the bowl of water.

"Well, they got tired of me calling it my affliction growing up — said it was far too depressing of a code phrase," he explained. "It was either that, my time of the month, or time to let the dog out of the kennel."

"Those are all ridiculous," she said, still laughing. "But I love them."

"They helped... distract from how wretched the whole situation really is," he mumbled, looking down. Then he sighed. "And tonight is just another ugly scar added."

Ivy hated how sad he looked. She could see the self-hatred that Val and Sirius saw so easily, it being the first time it'd reared its head inside of him around her. And just as they had, something in her was dying to make him realize how wrong he was.

"You know, I'm pretty," Ivy told him simply.

Remus raised a somewhat amused eyebrow, forgetting all about his scars. "I agree," he grinned. "But someone's quite confident in herself."

"No, I mean," she shook her head, stopping to sigh. Then Ivy cast a glance at Sirius, her expression softening. "I have... all these scars, Remus, from what happened. And I hated them — thought they made me ugly and broken. But then Siri looks at me and makes me feel like the most beautiful girl in the world. He kisses them and caresses them and loves every inch of me, and that's helping me to love myself too."

"And maybe I can't do the same for you — make you like your scars," she went on. "But if you think you're ugly, then you must think I am too. And that hurts my feelings."

Remus' eyes softened as he covered her hand which was cleaning the blood off his neck. "It would be foul of me to hurt your feelings."

"Yes," she said matter of factly, "it would be. And you're a very pretty boy, Remmy. Don't ever think otherwise."

He couldn't help but chuckle, shaking his head a bit. "Sure, I guess I am."

"I don't believe you," she said, turning her nose up playfully. "I have to hear you say it."

"Say what?"

"That you're a pretty boy. C'mon," she said, smiling up at him.

"No way," he laughed.

"Please, Rem," she said softly, wanting him to be more comfortable in his own skin. "Just say it — you're pretty."

"You're pretty," he copied, knowing he was skirting around saying it.

Ivy huffed and crossed her arms. "Please," she whispered.

Remus stared down at her for a moment before sighing and nodding. "I'm a pretty boy," he murmured.

She smiled softly and squeezed his hand. "Now if only you'd believe it."