Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

A Curious Nature	By : CondemnedForLife Category: Harry Potter Crossovers > Slash - Male/Male Views: 28002 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 5
Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter world or its characters, or the Twilight world and its characters, and I make absolutely no profit from writing this story.

Chapter List
- 9
- 10
Summary: For the Black-Lupin family, Forks is a second chance at life and at love for a group of war-damaged teenagers and their parents. Post-War. Harry/Jacob

Pairings: Harry Potter/Jacob Black, Remus/Sirius, Draco/Seth, Theo/Embry, Hermione/Blaise, Ron/Neville.

Category: Harry Potter/Twilight

Genre: Romance/Family

Rating: M/NC-17

Warnings: Mature themes, slash, gay (male/male) relationships, some angst, drama, gay sex, crossover, canon for books one to four and AU after that.

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Embry had told Theo at the very beginning of the journey that he had booked a table at an Italian restaurant in Port Angeles.

"Do you like Italian?" Embry asked nervously, thinking that he probably should have inquired about that before he booked the table.

"Italian is fine," Theo replied softly. He looked up when Embry called his name softly.

"Everything will be fine," Embry reassured his nervous imprint. Theo glanced at his imprint shyly out of the corner of his eye and the shapeshifter gave him a bright smile that caused the wizard's heart to thump faster in his chest.

"I know."

On the drive to the restaurant neither wizard nor werewolf said much. Rather than feeling uncomfortable about the silence, Theo simply felt that no words were needed. Every few minutes Embry would place his hand over Theo's and hold it gently, moving slowly so that his imprint would see him moving and would not be startled. He'd only remove it again when he needed it to shift the gears before returning again and after the first few times Theo held his hand out in anticipation for the warmth of Embry's hand to cover his own again.

It was if they had know each other their entire lives and were now being reunited after an extended absence. The quietness in the car was surprisingly comfortable, even reassuring. The only tension came from their over awareness of each other. Theo could feel every breath Embry took as if it was his own and the shapeshifter could sense when Theo was beginning to get anxious again and a gently spoken word or two would stop his hands from wringing in his lap.

As innocent as he was when it came to sexual tension, having never experience anything except violence during sex, Theo felt as if the car was too warm and enclosed at times. Every so often the scent of Embry's cologne and a natural scent that smelt wild and free would drift towards him and he would inhale deeply, his eyelids fluttering.

It was combined with another scent as well. A muskier scent that had him feeling strangely happy and warm.

Not much later, they parked outside a restaurant called Bel Cibo. Theo quickly removed himself from the stifling car and Embry followed him. Without waiting for Embry to make the first move, Theo reached forward and slid his small hand into the Native American's much bigger one. Embry glanced down in surprise and then smiled happily at Theo, who blushed and ducked his head feeling shy about his out of character boldness.

They entered the restaurant hand in hand and after waiting for a moment the host came up to greet them.

"Reservations under Call," Embry told him, stroking his thumb across Theo's wrist when the boy's hand began to tremble inside of his.

The huge brown eyes set in the pale wizard's face began to widen as they darted around frantically, taking in the crowded restaurant. Theo attempted to centre himself and came his rapid breathing by clutching tightly to the large, warm hand which completely enclosed his own smaller one. It worked for the most part and the wizard began to slowly relax in the unfamiliar surroundings with Embry by his side.

The restaurant's host, a man in an expensive, dark suit and a navy cravat, ran his finger down the open reservation book in front of him and then nodded. "Si. Come with me, par favoir."

They followed the man into the restaurant, passing couples and families dining happily. The restaurant was beautifully decorated with wall paintings by Italian artists that Theo did not recognise but thought were wonderfully painted nonetheless. Elaborate sconces were placed every few metres along the wall on medium lighting giving the entire place an intimate glow.

The host led them down to one of the more discreet tables in the restaurant. It would give them their privacy while they could still see the rest of the people dining at the tables nearby. "This is you table, signori. Someone will be down to take your order in a few moments." He handed them both a menu and with a bow left them alone.

Reluctantly, separating their hands they each took a seat at the table.

Theo opened the menu he had been given and frowned in puzzlement. It was all in Italian. Not a word was in English.

"Can't understand it?" Embry guessed after seeing the confusion on his face. He laughed when Theo shook his head. "Me neither. I've never had much interest in learning foreign languages."

"I can speak a little French," Theo told him, "but Blaise can speak fluent Italian. I guess I should have asked him for lessons."

"Blaise? That's the one who was glaring at me and hoping I'd burst into flames isn't it?"

The brunet let out a startled laugh and nodded. "Blaise is very protective of me. Of all of us really."

"But especially of you?" Embry guessed. He knew he was correct when Theo lowered his eyes to his menu again, his stance anxious once again.

Angry with himself for making the other boy nervous when he had begun to relax, Embry quickly changed the subject. "Do you know what I do when I don't know what to order?"

Theo looked up curiously at the Quileute boy and shook his head. Embry grinned and closed his eyes, then ran a finger down the length of the menu before stopping and opening his eyes. "Penne all'arrabbiata ," he announced.

Trying to hold in his chuckles, the young wizard closed his own eyes and let his finger trail down over the smooth surface of the menu. He gingerly opened one eye when he stopped and said softly, "Pasta Carbonara."

The waitress came to take their order shortly after that and they both ordered a glass of coke as well.

"See?" Embry put his hands in his lap and leaned forward over the table. "Works every time."

Trembling, under his gaze Theo began to pant slightly as he felt himself heating up. He bravely raised his eyes to meet his date's and gasped at the tender gaze he was been given. There was that look again. The one where Embry seemed to see Theo as though he was the most important thing, the only thing even, in the entire world. To be on the receiving end of such a look was overwhelming to the wizard after so many years of abuse and he asked Embry about his family to change the subject.

"I'm an only child. Well, kind of," Embry told him. "I've never met my father and I don't want to, to be honest. I love my mother and I'm happy that she's my only family."

His love for his mother was quite clear in his voice and Theo bit his lip when a vague memory of his own mother came into his mind, of a time before his entire world had been turned upside down.

"My mother died when I was really young and I don't really remember her. I only remember my father and I wished I didn't," Theo said.

"I'm so sorry Theo. How did she die?"

"An accident," the wizard lied. "A terrible accident."

Their food arrived then and Theo was glad to see that Pasta Carbonara didn't turn out to be some weird, inedible dish. It seemed to be a plain enough plate of pasta with a delicious smelling sauce poured on top of it. He carefully picked up a small piece on his fork and placed it in his mouth, chewing slowly while he did so then hummed happily at the burst of flavour in his mouth.

Across the table, Embry was happily digging into his own meal. He'd only had two breakfasts, a dozen ham and cheese sandwiches, eight burgers and a carton of vanilla ice-cream to eat that day. He was ravenous. He gulped down his dish quickly and was finished by the time Theo was half way done.

When he was full, the brunet put down his fork and smiled slyly at the bigger boy. "You sure you had enough?" His gaze wandered to the crystal clean plate and Embry's skin darkened as he blushed.

"I have a big appetite," he admitted sheepishly. There was a pause for a moment before he asked, "Are you going to finish that?"

Laughing softly Theo shook his head and passed his plate to his date, happy to share his food. At least Embry scoffed his food down with someone amount of dignity, nothing like having to watch Ron eat.

While they were waiting for desert they both shared small pieces of information, likes and dislikes. While movies were something slightly out of Theo's knowledge range, books, both magical and muggle, were something he knew a lot about and was delighted to discover that Embry was passionate about them too. Well, the muggle ones at least.

"How can you not love the Lord of the Rings trilogy?" Theo demanded.

"Its stupid."

"It amazing," the wizard protested and Embry inwardly celebrated at having brought that healthy flush to those cheeks, that passionate sparkle to those chocolate eyes.

"I'm not saying that the storyline isn't incredible. It is and I can watch all three films in a row without moving, but I will never read those books again," Embry replied grimacing.

"You'd rather see a story than read it?" His voice was incredulous and the shape shifter raised a single eyebrow at him.

"Have you ever watched the Lord of the Rings movies?"

Theo opened his mouth to answer then sighed. "No."

"Ha!" Embry said triumphantly. "Then you have no idea what you're missing out on. Now if you were trying to get me to reread a Darren Shan book it would be a different thing altogether."

The boy across his rolled his eyes heavenwards but didn't argue. He was simply enjoying himself too much. Their desert arrived then, a piece of chocolate fudge cake each and Theo's mouth watered. He kept it a secret that he had incredible sweet tooth, although many in his family had already discovered it and teased him relentlessly about it. Remus, of course, hadn�t a leg to stand on.

The cake was delicious and Theo happily dug into it, moaning softly at the rich and decadent taste. He ate it with pleasure, oblivious to his transfixed date who was staring unblinkingly at the chocolate cake disappeared between those soft, pink lips. When he was finished, the brunet began to lick his fingers clean determined not to let any of the cake escape.

Embry only barely held back a groan and Theo glanced up at his curiously when he made a strained noise. "Are you ok?" he asked concerned, noting that Embry hadn't touched his desert.

The shape shifter blinked blearily at him the smiled tightly. "I'm fine, thanks."

"Um, ok."

Embry stood up slowly and held out his hand to Theo who happily, almost eagerly took and sighed at the warmth that radiated up his hand. The Native American was like a furnace and the wizard longed to curl into the warmth but dared not to.

They paid, or rather an insistent Embry paid, for the meal and they left the restaurant quietly. Theo shivered when the cold air hit them and his date hurried him into the car and the warmth.

Once again, the drive pack to La Push was made mostly in silence but this time in held a tenser tone. Neither boy wanted the evening to end and although Embry knew he had promised Theo's parents that he would get him home at a reasonable hour the temptation to drive around all night just so he could spend more time with his imprint was incredibly strong.

Embry pulled up outside the large gates to Old Willow and got out of the car first so that he could open Theo's door. Nervous and uncertain the wizard stared up at the taller boy. Merlin, he wished that the night could have lasted for longer than this.

Remorseful that he'd had so little time with his time with his imprint, Embry gazed down into those huge, brown eyes and a huge burst of emotion had his heart fluttering and his knees going weak.

"I know," Embry blurted out, then closed his eyes at his stupidity. "I mean- at least I think I know."

"Know what?" Theo asked fearfully, struggling not to take a step back.

"About what hurt you. It was, you were-"

"-raped," Theo whispered. "Hard to say isn't it." He winced at how bitter his voice sounded.

A large, dark hand reached out slowly and cupped Theo's face, lifting those watery blue eyes to meet his.

"So beautiful," Embry whispered softly, wiping away the silvery tear tracks. "How anyone could hurt you is beyond me."

Theo hiccupped a sob and a tremulous smile spread over his face that had Embry breathing in sharply.

Slowly, so as not to startle his imprint, Embry began to lower his face towards Theo's. He stopped when there lips were inches apart and smoothed his thumb over the boy's sharp cheekbone, wanting Theo to make the next move. Wanting Theo to trust him enough that he would feel safe enough to move. He waited patiently and then suddenly the wizard found his courage.

He moved forwards, taking Embry by surprise and pressed his lips cautiously against the shapeshifters, then more firmly as his courage grew. Frozen at first, the dark-skinned boy quickly recovered and buried his other hand in the wizard's silky, chocolate curls.

Theo was shocked when he felt Embry's tongue laving over his lips but he instinctively pressed closer to the muscular boy and opened his mouth to receive it. All traces of anxiousness and nervousness fled and he whimpered when Embry's tongue gently invaded his mouth. Embry's other hand moved to curl in Theo's hair as well and he cradled his imprint's head as he kissed his with an intense thoroughness. As they continued to kiss Theo's hand moved up to hold onto broad shoulders as his knees became weak with the desire flooding his system.

It took all of Embry's will power to pull back from the kiss but now that he was sure of what had happened to Theo, even if he didn't know the details, he knew he couldn't put pressure on his mate. Pushing him too far, too quickly would only break Theo even if the boy didn't know that himself.

Theo was panting faintly when he pulled back, his eyes glazed over and confused, no doubt because of the new and intense emotions he was experiencing. His cheeks and nose were stained a pink hue and his lips were kiss swollen. Embry moaned when he saw the wizard's face wanting nothing more to return to kissing him but. . .

"Theo," he called gently. "I'm going to walk you back to your house, okay?"

His imprint blinked blearily at him for a moment before recovering and smiling at him happily. Together they walked up the long lane that led to Old Willows pressed close together, their hands clasped tightly. When they reached the door Theo turned around and gazed shyly at the shape shifter.

"I had a wonderful time tonight," Theo said softly, tempted to lick his lips at the best memory of all.

"So did I," Embry beamed. "Could we do this again?"

"You want to?" Theo looked slightly surprised but mostly delighted.

"Yes," the other boy replied firmly, his hand coming up to cradle Theo's face again. "I can't think of anything I want more."

"Then I'd loved to go out with you again," the brunet told him.

Theo turned to go inside before abruptly whirling around again, and pressing his lips against Embry's in a chaste kiss. "Goodnight Embry," he murmured, then disappeared into the house.

The Quileute boy's eyes widened, then he smiled. "Goodnight Theo."

Inside the house, Theo had his back pressed against the door as he trembled, his eyes closed tightly and his face split into a wide grin. He opened his eyes at the sound of laughter and scowled at Harry who was sitting on the stairs with a cup of tea in his hands.

"I take it, it went well then," he chuckled, sipping his drink with a happy sigh.

The scowl quickly disappeared and was replaced with a smile. "It was wonderful. He said he wanted to see me again."

"Why wouldn't he?" Harry demanded, standing up as he finished the last of his drink. "Any men would be glad and damn lucky to have you."

An impulse, Theo rushed across the hall and hugged his brother tightly against him. He breathed in the sugary scent of the tea as Harry hugged him back and breathed softly in his ear, "I love you, Harry."

With that he released him and took the stairs two at a time, leaving Harry staring after his with a grin on his face. "Love you too, bro."

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"Now I've had the time of my life," Harry belted out, holding up a wooden spoon as a microphone, shaking his hips and singing along with the muggle radio.

Hermione bent over giggling as Ron continued, "No I never felt like this before, yes I swear it's the truth and I owe it all to you." The red-head spun around rapidly and grabbed Hermione by the waist.

"'Cause I've had the time of my life and I owe it all to you," Hermione half laughed and half sang out.

The three began to dance around the table, shaking their hips and waving their arms as they moved. Harry waggled his butt in Hermione's direction as he poured eggs into the saucepan for an omelette and yelped when she slapped it. "I've been waiting for so long now I've finally found someone to stand by me," the black-haired boy called out, then held onto the counter as Hermione and Ron began to waltz around the kitchen table as he burst out laughing.

Neville wandered into the kitchen rubbing his eyes sleepily then blinked rapidly when Hermione and Ron twirled past him singing at the top of their lungs.

". . .What the hell are you doing?"

Harry laughed and beckoned him over from where he was popping bread into the toaster. "Its our early morning exercise," he told the other boy. "Preparation for the day ahead my fine friend. We put a silencing spell around the room so that we wouldn't wake up anybody else."

Hermione spun towards them then and only barely managed to catch herself on the counter before she fell. Her face was flushed, her hair frizzy and she looked deliriously happy.

Neville shrieked when he was suddenly yanked back into his boyfriends arms and Ron began to twirl him around the room.

"You're the one thing, I can't get enough of," Harry and Hermione sang out as the two boys began to two a dangerous salsa that Harry was sure Ron had learnt from Fred and George.

Still singing, the two friends began to finish off breakfast, bumping their hips against each others as they did so with a lot of hair tossing from Hermione. Dodging the still vigorously dancing couple, they set the table and placed the food down. Walking to the door and narrowly avoiding hitting Neville as the boy was dipped down by his boyfriend, Harry held up a plate of food and wafted the smell up the stairs with his hand. The telltales signs of feet hitting the floor had him grinning and returning to kitchen.

Shortly afterwards Draco, Blaise and Theo entered the room and Harry pointed his wand at the radio to turn it off. Picking up a slice of buttered toast, he nibbled on the edge of it. Now that there was nothing to take his mind off of it, his worry about Remus and the full moon to come that night return in two fold. He felt his breath catch in his throat as a panic attacked began to ensue and turned away from every one else to hide his distress. He took a deep gulp of coffee as he tried to relax and after a few minutes his heart rate slowed down and breathing was easier.

It was easy to feel the tension in the room behind all the laughing and joking at the table. Not a minute passed by without someone glancing at the towards the door. Sirius and Remus had yet to emerge from their room and it was doubtful that anyone of them had missed the cries of pain or pacing that occurred during the earlier hours of that morning.

As they were all finishing up and Theo and Blaise had begun to collect the dishes, Sirius entered the kitchen looking exhausted. There were deep circles under his eyes that were bloodshot and his hair was in complete disarray.

Draco quickly filled him a cup of coffee and brought it to where he had collapsed in one of the chairs by the table. He took it gratefully and drank it in one go, finishing with a blissful sigh. The blond took it and refilled it without being asked.

"How is he?" Blaise ventured to ask.

Sirius sighed and rubbed a hand over his eyes. "Not so good," he admitted. "He was up most of the night pacing. His bones are aching pretty badly this month. Thank Merlin we have the Wolfsbane or I don't know what we'd do. How's it coming along anyway?" He directed his question at Theo and Draco.

"We've had it stewing for the past four days and it should be ready now," Draco said. "We just need to add the tentacular leaves and will bring it right up to him."

Sirius nodded then grinned slyly at Theo. "How was your date last night, my son?"

Everyone laughed when Theo turned fuchsia. He stuck out his tongue at them but laughed along with them. "It was. . .wonderful."

He hid his face behind his hands when Harry and Ron wolf-whistled loudly. Sirius stood and deposited his cup in the sink and brought Theo close to him in a one-armed hug. "I'm glad kiddo," he whispered in his ear then kissed him on the top of the head.

"I'm going back up to Remus, try to keep out of mischief," he told them, yawning afterwards.

"Do you want us to bring up any food?" Harry asked in concern.

Sirius shook his head. "Not at the moment anyway. Remus wouldn't be able to keep anything down and I'm too worked up to eat."

He left then with Draco and Theo following close behind to go to the basement where they had their makeshift potions laboratory. Theo immediately went over to the check the potion while Draco opened the ingredients cupboard to take out the tentacular leaves that Neville had harvested for them.

"Is it ok?" Draco inquired, returning with the small vials of carefully crushed leaves. He didn't even want to think of what might happen if the potion had gone wrong somewhere along its making.

Theo quickly dispelled his fears. "Its perfect. Molten yellow and bubbling at the moment. Perfect and disgusting, just the way we need it."

Draco chuckled and opened the vial carefully, standing away at a safe distance he tipped the leaves into the cauldron then closed his eyes at the bright explosion of light that burst from it. They peered in and sighed in relief at the thick, dark yellow substance bubbling in the cauldron.

"I'll turn on the heat," Draco told Theo. "You stir."

A few minutes later they were both settled at the desk, Theo carefully turning the ladle in the cauldron counter clock-wise.

"So," the blond began, "last night went well did it?"

The other wizard smiled softly at the thought of Embry. "Yeah, really well. He took me to a lovely Italian restaurant and he," Theo paused for a minute, looking embarrassed before continuing in a whisper, "he kissed me at the end of the night.

Draco smirked at the happy, dreamy look in his brother's eyes. "I take it that you enjoyed it then."

The other boy nodded enthusiastically. "It was lovely." He lowered his eyes and blinked rapidly. "I didn't think that after him. . . that any man would ever want to be with me again but-"

"Wait," his brother interrupted looking surprised, "Embry knows about what happened to you?"

Theo nodded shakily. "He guessed. He said he just. . . knew. And he didn't seem to care that I'm not. . ."

The brunet startled when Draco suddenly grabbed the hand that wasn't stirring the potion and held on tight. "Theo, you deserve to be loved just as much if not more than anybody else because of what happened to you. What he did was unforgivable but this now can show you that what he did will not haunt you for the rest of you life, because you won't let it. Understand?"

Theo giggled at Draco's fierce tone and nodded. With one last squeeze to Theo's hand, the blond let go and returned to monitoring the heat under the potion. After a few moments of silence the young Malfoy cleared his throat and casually inquired, "So did he say anything about Seth?"

Biting his lip to hold in a laugh, Theo answered back coolly, "Seth? We were on a date, why would he be talking about Seth?"

Draco shot him an annoyed look. "I know but. . . did he say anything at all. . ."

The timer for the end of stirring the potion went off and Theo removed the ladle. Summoning a goblet from one of the cupboards Theo began to pout the potion in with the ladle. "He said plenty of things. We were trying to get to know each other after all."

Putting a stasis charm on the cauldron, Theo began to clear up and ignore the silently fuming blond behind. Just as he was about to climb the stairs with the potion in hand, the wizard turned around to face his scowling brother.

"He did mention that Seth hadn't been able to stop talking about you since that day on the beach," Theo grinned at the shocked look on Draco's face then ran up the stairs.

Waiting until he was sure Theo was gone, Draco fist pumped the air vigorously, a luminous smile spreading over his face. Settling down after a minute he smoothed back his hair and straightened his clothes. Before walking calmly up the stairs to join the rest of his family.

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Sirius hummed a Weird Sister's song as he slowly stroked his husband's hair. He was leaning back against the pillows propped up against the headboard of their enormous bed with Remus' head in his lap. The werewolf's face was buried in his mate's stomach and he let out small whimpering noises every few minutes that had Sirius' heart wrenching.

The animus pressed a gentle kiss to his mate's sweaty forehead and the man gave him a pained smile that had Sirius blinking back tears.

"Tired," Remus croaked hoarsely.

"I know baby," Sirius choked out, stroking his mate's face. "Just a little longer until all this is over."

"Until next month," the werewolf whispered, stiffening as his body was wracked with more pains.

"Shush," Sirius soothed him, holding his hand as he rode out the pains.

Remus gasped and collapsed against in his mate when the burning pain in his bones finally eased off. A knock came at the door then and after receiving a nod from Remus, Sirius called for them to come in.

Theo and Draco quietly opened the door and slipped inside, their other siblings hovering behind them waiting anxiously to see how Remus was.

"We brought the Wolfsbane." Theo held up the smoking goblet and Remus groaned as his sensitive nose caught the disgusting smell.

Sirius chuckled and held out a hand for the potion. "Yes, I know its disgusting but open wide, hold your nose and drink fast."

With Sirius and Draco's help, Remus managed to struggle into a sitting position and reluctantly opened his mouth for Sirius to pour in the vile potion. Grimacing at the taste, the werewolf swallowed it down and stuck his tongue out.

"Yuck," he groaned. "It tastes worst every time."

Hermione cautiously entered the room then with a bottle of water which Remus took gratefully.

"We brought you sleeping and pain potions as well," Theo said, holding up the two vials.

Remus shook his head. "Not yet. Maybe later. When it gets worse."

Theo shuddered at the thought of the pain getting any worse when he could already see how much Remus was hurting. How was it that someone as monstrous as him and his pack never suffered before the full moon at all but someone as wonderful and kind as Remus was, was wracked with agony.

Hermione burst into tears when Remus eyes rolled back and he spasmed in Sirius' lap.

She buried her face in Draco's shoulder who patted her back comfortingly, looking extremely upset himself.

"Mione," Remus mumbled, reaching out a hand to her, which she took immediately. "Don't be so upset. You know that this happens every month."

"It doesn't make it any better," she sobbed. "I hate seeing you suffering so much."

His other children nodded and Remus exchanged a sad glance with his partner before patting the bed beside him. "Ok, everybody up."

It seemed that the Black-Lupin children had only been waiting for an invitation because they all happily rushed into the room and clambered up onto the bed, being extra careful not to jostle or harm Remus as they did so. With the two men in the middle of the bed, the teenagers soon sprawled out around them snuggling into each other and into Remus and Sirius to get comfortable.

"Good thing you decided on such a big bed," Remus murmured to his husband, eliciting chuckles from those who heard him.

Within minutes, Draco had summoned the huge plasma screen from downstairs and his House boxset and was fixated on episode fourteen of season one. With his head cushioned on Harry's stomach the blond engrossed himself in his series while everyone else began to talk about the meeting with the Cullens the night before.

"They seem pretty alright for bloodsuckers," Ron said thoughtfully. "I think the lack of feasting on human blood had made them less insane than their counterparts."

"And they truly don't drink human blood?" Remus asked, almost incredulously.

Sirius shook his head with a bemused smile. "Nope. Their eyes are pure gold. Carlisle told me himself that he hasn't drank human blood since shortly after he was turned."

"Rosalie told me she's never drank it," Draco piped up, his eyes never straying from Dr. House as he went on one of his long medical rambles that the blond didn't understand but found fascinating all the same.

"That's incredible," Hermione breathed, having followed the conversation devotedly and everyone could see her hand itching to take notes. "The will power she would need to restrain herself would be incredible. I'd love to meet her."

"That shouldn't be a problem," a grinning Harry said. "Rosalie, Esme and Alice really want to meet you. I think they want to take you shopping or something."

Hermione's face lit up. "That would be wonderful. Not that I don't love you all but being surrounded by boys all the time can be a bit. . ."

"Frustrating?" Harry offered.

"Illuminating?" guessed Neville.

"Makes you want to bang you head against the wall?" Ron inquired.

"Too much," Hermione finished looking at them in amusement.

"What about me?" Blaise pouted at her. The only girl of the group leaned forward to kiss her boyfriend. "I never have too much of you."

"Parents in the room," Sirius declared loudly, looking anywhere but at their locked lips. "Public displays of affection not happening."

The teens chuckled and Harry nudged Theo. "We might have to get used to more displays of 'affection' soon, eh Theo?"

The brunet flushed and pushed his brother who tumbled off the edge of the bed with a 'oomph' and left Draco wondering where his pillow had suddenly disappeared too.

"I'm not sure you can talk Harry," Sirius laughed as Harry climbed back on the king-sized bed. "I saw you and that Jake boy laughing together that day on the beach."

Harry blushed furiously under his siblings teasing.

Remus growled. "What boy? I'm not sure if I like all these boys coming onto my sons."

"Then you probably won't be happy to hear about Draco's little admirer either," Ron laughed.

Draco, who was giving the appearance he wasn't listening to their conversation in the slightest, sunk down slightly in the bed as the tips of his ears turned pink. After lecturing both Harry and Draco for about ten minutes, Remus' took a sharp breath and gritted his teeth as pain flared up his spine. He was successful in holding in a cry only for a few seconds before it escaped, terrifying Theo and Hermione who were cuddled into his side.

"Blaise, pass me the potions," Sirius called to the boy closes to the bedside table where the potions had been put down. They were quickly handed to him and he coaxed the werewolf into opening his mouth.

Pouring the potions down quickly he held Remus' mouth closed and massaged his throat to get him to swallow. After a few minutes of shivering the werewolf's body relaxed and he fell into a deep sleep. Sirius sighed in relief and kissed his husband's lips softly. "Sleep Remus," he whispered. "Just sleep."

Nervous and restless about the night ahead, the young wizards and witch settled back down around their guardians and slowly one by one they drifted it off. They would need all the sleep they could get to keep up with a werewolf exploring his new home.

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"There now Remus," Sirius spoke calmly. "One step at a time."

He and Ron were half-walking, half-carrying Remus out of the house and down to the forest at the end of the garden. A few days before Harry and Blaise, the most powerful ward casters in the family, had created a series of complex wards around a large area in the forest starting at the back garden and moving for several miles into the forest.

The wards prevented any humans or large animals from getting inside the circle and would give Moony a large area of woodland to hunt in and mark as his own territory.

Remus moaned as the two carrying him had to climb over some rocks, his body jostling at the movement.

"Sirius, why is he so bad this month?" Theo asked fearfully, glancing at Remus' pale complexion. "He isn't usually this bad."

Sirius grunted as he and Ron come to a stop and carefully placed Remus against a tree, making sure he was as comfortable as possible before turning back to Theo.

"Its because of the move," the animagus sighed. "Moony knows that we aren't at Hogwarts or anywhere remotely similar. He anxious because he doesn't know if this new place is safe for us or not yet. Once he's marked his territory and checked the place out, he should be better next month."

They all nodded in understanding and Harry glanced up at the sky where the very last sliver of sun was disappearing.

"You'd better head back," Sirius told Draco and Theo who glanced up the sky as well and nodded. "Make sure to stay inside and lock all the doors."

Blaise and Harry waited until their brothers had crossed the boundary of the forest before waving them off and pulling up the strongest wards they could muster.

Sirius took another look at the sky and his eyes widened when he spotted the moon creeping over the trees of the forest.

"Transform," he yelled at them. "Now."

Harry quickly tucked his wand into his back pocket, closed his eyes and began to change. He felt the strange, tingling sensation spread through his body as the transformation began to take place. His body rapidly began to shrink and fur grew out of his body as well as a tail. Within seconds it was over and Harry opened his eyes, blinking blearily as he adjusted to his height difference and his change in eyesight.

It was clear from the moment he opened his eyes that Remus was already in the midst of his transformation. His body was twisting and turning as he screamed in anguish. The moon beamed down on them through the gaps in the trees, taunting and mocking them with the pain it was causing someone they loved so dearly.

Remus's back arched as it and his limbs stretched grotesquely It made Harry want to run over and comfort him, but he could see Padfoot standing beside him licking his face and whimpering to the werewolf. With a final yell of pain, their guardian's transformation was complete and Moony lay panting in the middle of the clearing, his breath causing fog to appear in the air due to the cold of the night.

Padfoot whined and nudged Moony carefully with his nose. The werewolf opened one golden eye and growled before rising slowly on shaky legs, It wasn't long before he found his footing and was standing over ten feet tall, sniffing the ait warily. After a few seconds he turned to Padfoot and approached him slowly, still a bit uneven while walking.

The werewolf sniffed his mate, then after growling happily he licked his mate's neck and bit it gently to insert his dominance. The black dog quickly rolled over on his back and presented his vulnerable stomach in submission and barked cheekily. Moony rolled his eyes, but growled at his mate to get up again.

Turning his attention to his cubs standing at a slight distance, Moony prowled forwards and had each of them bear their stomachs, indicating that they knew he was alpha and licked them thoroughly in reward when they did.

Harry's face scrunched up when Moony's long tongue licked the side of his head making his fur stand up on end. He huffed indignantly at his wolf guardian and shook his head to straighten his fur. The huge wolf huffed out a laugh and then turned back to Padfoot. Raising his head up to the full moon, Moony gave a long, deep howl and after a second Harry and Padfoot followed suit while Blaise and Ron gave out loud roars.

With a slight turn of his head indicating that they should follow him, Moony took off at a run eager to explore his new surroundings and insure they were safe for his pack.

Padfoot and Ron followed close behind them with Hermione hanging on to the lion's back. Blaise loped along after them at a sedate pace while Harry brought up the rear, struggling to keep up with the rest of them on his shorter legs.

However, Moony never let any of the pack be left behind. He stopped at particular intervals to mark his scent along the trees and Padfoot did the same to a lesser extent. Blaise on the other hand took every opportunity they stopped to tear the barks of trees up with his claws. Harry was just glad that no human would be walking along there. He was doubtful that there were many Asiatic bears in Northern America.

After several hours of running through the forest and marking his territory, making sure that every other animal knew he was now in charge of this part of the forest the werewolf stopped for a rest in the clearing. Moony barked at his cubs to remain there while he and Padfoot went hunting for something to eat.

Ron rolled over on his back and roared out a yawn, his tail thumping against the ground languidly. The small red panda that Hermione was at the moment had jumped off his back just in time and was now scuttling across the leaves and branches towards her temporarily bear-boyfriend. Blaise was lounging against one of the trees and chewing languidly on a tree branch. He glanced down when Hermione clambered up on top of his stomach and stole some of his leaves to nibble one. The big, brown bear woofed out a laugh and Hermione squeaked at him as she curled up on his chest to be more comfortable while he was eating.

Harry tried to find a comfortable hollow in the bottom of a tree to rest in until his guardians came back but every time he found one he immediately became restless. He'd get up and go to the next one he found only to feel even more unsettled in that one.

Whimpering softly, the little black fox scrambled out of his latest den and kicked leaves backwards into in disgust. Ron turned his head to the side and growled questioningly. Harry merely sniffed and turned his back to his siblings and set off at a trot for one of the spaces in the trees. He barked reassuringly when his brothers and sister made noises of protests and assured them that he was only going to explore a bit and wouldn't wander too far.

His head bent to the ground, nose whuffling at the different scents attached to the leaves and grass, Harry ambled around the forest without paying any attention to where he was going. Attracted by the smell of rabbits, the artic fox set off at a run, tongue hanging out to one side as he joyfully followed the trail.

Reaching the burrow he eagerly dove into it, terrifying the resting rabbits within who leapt out at the other side of the burrow as he barked at them. Harry chased them excitedly having no intention of actually capturing them and eating them but enjoying the chase anyway.

Panting, he paused after a half an hour of sprinting after one particular rabbit who seemed to realise he wasn't going to eat her, and would stop every so often to glance back at him, thump her foot on the ground and then run off again in a different direction.

Harry slumped down on the ground exhausted and let his paws hang out limply on either side of him. He watched the clouds pass over the moon overhead and his ears flickered when a loud howl pierced the night. It was definitely a wolf's howl, but it didn't sound anything like Moony. It sounded more like an actual wolf than a werewolf and Harry stirred nervously.

He was no match for an actual wolf in his current size and Moony would be furious, whether in a human mind or not, if he smelt a human in his newly marked territory so left out transforming back into his original form. Standing up on all fours again, Harry peered into the darkness, his eyesight allowing him to see much further in the dark than it did while he was a human.

Relaxing slowly, when he couldn't see anything moving anywhere close by Harry made to turn back, certain that Remus and Sirius would have returned to the clearing by now and were probably furious, when another scent caught his attention.

Sniffing once, then again more deeply Harry whipped around to get more of it. It was the most delicious thing he had ever smelt as both a human and a fox. Earthy, musky and completely feral it had Harry completely entranced and without realising it, his feet began to move in the direction it was coming as his nose whiffed at the air.

He realised almost straight away that the scent was all over the part of the forest he was in. On the trees, the branches, the leaves on the ground, the huge rocks placed covered in moss and ivy.

So fascinated by the smell, the little fox only barely realised that he was about to crossover the boundary line of the wards he and Blaise had set up before he stopped himself. Tempted as he was to just give in, run across the boundary line and continued to follow that scent to wherever it led, Harry knew that it was a very bad idea.

Out there he had no protection and while he was overly capable of defending himself, he didn't want to need to attack anyone or anything. Whining in annoyance, the artic fox turned back and began to trot back the way he had came, following his own smell to find his way back. He attempted to put the scent to the back of his mind but was only slightly successful and memory of it niggled at him constantly.

Harry winced when he heard a furious growl come from up ahead and his ears flattened back against his skull. Well, that couldn't be good. It either meant that Moony was back and had realised he was missing or. . . no, there was no other possibility. Moony knew he was missing and he was in big trouble.

Tail tucked between his legs, Harry crawled into the clearing his stomach nearly flat against the ground and his eyes lowered. He knew the minute Moony had spotted him because of the ear-splitting snarl the werewolf released.

The black fox flinched and lowered his head even more until his chin was butting the ground. He could feel the vibrations through his paws when the ground moved as Moony sprinted towards him. He didn't dare look up even when the werewolf stood towering over him, not wanting to appear disobedient.

Moony's mouth lowered and Harry shivered as the warmth breath blew over him. He could sense that the werewolf was inspecting his body, making sure he was uninjured and he held as still as possible for it. Once his guardian was satisfied that his cub was unhurt, he licked Harry clean of all the dirt and leaves he had gathered on his traipse through the wood.

The animagus bared the indignity of being washed clean silently, and only yelped once when Moony gave him a reprimanding nip on the tail as a punishment for wandering off. Finished with cleaning his cub, the werewolf picked Harry up by the skin of his neck and walked back to the other animal waiting for hem at the other side of the clearing.

Miserably, Harry tucked his tail and legs into his body and ignored his sniggering siblings and godfather. He doubted that Moony planned on putting him down anytime soon in case he ran off again. It was going to be a long night.

-----------------------

Draco swung his legs idly as he gazed lazily out the window in the sitting room, sitting on the cushioned window seat. He hummed a song he had heard Harry singing that morning.

A loud howl that sounded from outside had him opening his eyes a bit wider and peering out into the dark. Even though he knew he wouldn't be able to see anything, he couldn't prevent the reaction to try and catch a glimpse of some of his family.

"Do you think they're ok?" Theo asked and the blond turned to look at him. The boy was hanging upside down on the couch and reading a book.

Draco shrugged and turned back to staring out the window. "I hope so," he answered quietly. "I hated seeing Remus in so much pain today. I've never seen him like that on any other full moon."

The other boy frowned and blew at the curl that had fallen into one of his eyes. "I use to wish that any werewolf would suffer unbearable agony every time they changed."

His comment made the other boy smirk. "I don't blame you after the time you spend with that bunch of monsters. I'd wish a hell of a lot worse on them."

Theo grinned at his brother, then shook his head slowly, his smile fading. "I would give anything to take Remus' lycanthropy away. To stop him suffering like this."

The blond hummed but didn't say anything, his eyes following the full moon as it moved across the dark sky. He sighed, his breath fogging up the glass and he began to draw aimlessly in the mist that covered the window.

"Bored?" Theo's amused voice drifted over to him.

"Incredibly so," Draco drawled.

"I'm sorry you had to stay here with me."

The other wizard lifted his head and scowled at his brother. "Don't be stupid. You know someone needs to stay with you every full moon and I chose to this time."

"Yeah, but you could be out there-"

"-in the freezing cold? In case you didn't notice I'm not a little snow fox or whatever Harry is, I'm a snake and snakes despise the cold." He stood up from the window seat and stretched his arms above his head. His jumper rode up, revealing a strip of pale, flat abdomen. "I'd much rather be here beside the fire."

Draco dropped down beside the fire and curled up rubbing his hands together, which Theo noticed with concern were nearly blue with the cold. He dropped down beside his brother and grabbed one of his hands in his own, shivering at how cold they were.

"Merlin! Are you always this cold?"

Draco looked sheepish and grinned weakly. "Usually only at night time and during the winter. That's why I loved the summer so much, because its so much warmer. I have to cast heating charms on my bed every night so that I don't wake up as an icicle in the morning."

Theo burst out laughing and looked curiously at the Slytherin who was gazing at the fire longingly. On a spur of the moment decision, Theo closed his eyes and quickly transformed into his animagus form.

Glancing back, Draco's eyes widened in surprise and then amusement. "Something you want to tell me Theo?"

The huge tiger merely growled softly and shuffled closer to cuddle into the wizard. The blond laughed and then lay down and huddled back into his brother, sighing at the blissful warmth the tiger emitted. He chuckled when a large paw curled across his abdomen and before long he found himself drifting off to sleep his last thoughts focused on his absent family and hoping that they were still safe.

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Hey everyone! Sorry, for such a long wait but school work got in the way! Anyway, that was the newest chapter of A Curious Nature and I hope that everyone enjoyed it!

Thanks to everyone who reviewed because they always inspire me to write faster. Oh and I'd just like to give a big "Woohoo", because Branwen777 is back in business! Yes! ;)
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A Curious Nature