Meant to Be

Last Chapter Guys. This story is complete. Thanks for reviews. Am focusing on uploading to Fanfiction.net so check me out there. remuslives23 is the penname on that site.



Chapter Twenty



‘Jess, don’t,’ Remus said, rushing over to her as she bent to pick up Teddy for a cuddle. ‘He’s too heavy now.’

Jess straightened and watched in exasperation as Remus picked up their son.

‘I’m pregnant, not dying, Remus,’ she muttered.

‘Yes but you are very pregnant, honey,’ he retorted. ‘The healers said no heavy lifting and Teddy definitely counts as heavy lifting.’

Teddy wriggled impatiently. ‘Daddy, I wanna go with Uncle Harry,’ he said, and Remus nodded.

‘Alright, alright,’ he said, taking Jess’ hand and walking out of the living room of the Burrow.



He put Teddy down on the veranda and watched him run off to Harry who lifted him onto his broom, holding him tight as he pushed off into the air.

‘Not too high, Harry,’ Jess called, alarm shooting through her. Remus laughed and put his arms around her.

‘He’ll be fine,’ he soothed, kissing her temple and she sighed.

‘I wish you wouldn’t let him go up on that thing,’ she muttered and Molly laughed as she came out onto the porch, tray laden with morning tea.

‘Harry will look after him. Sit down, Jess,’ she scolded. ‘You shouldn’t be on your feet too much.’



Jess rolled her eyes, but sat down at the small table, silently sighing in relief that the weight was off her sore feet. Remus sat down opposite her, watching her closely. He was concerned about her trying to do too much so late in her pregnancy. She was looking after Teddy as well as decorating the nursery, despite his numerous attempts to stop her, and she looked exhausted. Molly looked over at him and he could see the same concern in her face.

‘I’m fine,’ she said irritably, seeing the look that passed between him and Molly. ’Don’t fuss please. I can’t take any more fussing.’

‘Jess, you need to try and take it easier,’ Molly said pleadingly. ‘Take it from someone who knows. One baby is hard enough, but two put an enormous strain on your body.’

‘Tell me about it,’ Jess mumbled crankily, shifting in her seat and resting her hands on her swollen belly.



Molly shut up and drank her tea as Remus pulled Jess’ feet onto his lap, sliding her shoes off and rubbing her feet.

‘What about Katherine?’ he said, and Jess pulled a face.

‘No, I knew a Katherine at school and she was a real cow.’ He raised his eyebrows, but kept his mouth shut.

‘What about Victoria?’ Molly suggested, but this time Remus shook his head.

‘Too stuffy,’ he said. ‘And I hate Vicky.’

‘Joshua?’ Jess said softly, taking a deep breath as she began to relax.

‘Mmm,’ pondered Remus. ‘I don’t hate it.’

‘Yeah, that’s a good reason to choose it,’ Jess said with a smile and Remus laughed.

Remus continued to rub her feet as he shook his head. ‘Jess, you’ve only got a month left,’ he said. ‘And we don’t even have one name let alone two.’

‘We’ve got plenty of time to think about it,’ she said, closing her eyes as his fingers worked magic on her aching feet and ankles. ‘It’s not like I can do any damn thing else.’



Jess was finding the forced time off frustrating. It had taken her a few months to get pregnant, but when she did, she did it properly.

‘Twins?’ Remus had said seven months ago to the healer who had just broken the news. Jess wasn’t even able to get that much out, stunned by the news. Before she was six months pregnant, she’d had to finish work at Kingsley’s insistence and she had been at home ever since. Teddy stayed with her most days, the two and a half year old exhausting her with his endless energy. She was cranky and tired and slightly terrified about how she was going to possibly cope with two babies and a two and a half year old.



‘Look at me, Mummy,’ Teddy yelled as he and Harry zoomed past on the broom.

Jess dropped her feet to ground and sat up straight, her mouth falling open in surprise. Remus too, looked shocked as he turned to look at Teddy.

‘Did he just call you Mummy?’ Molly said, glancing at the two of them.

Remus turned back to look at Jess, a grin forming on his face.

‘Yes he did,’ he said, unable to hide his elation.



After he and Jess married nearly a year ago and she‘d signed the papers to adopt Teddy, Remus had broached the subject of their son calling Jess ‘mum’ but Jess had refused to suggest it to him.

‘He has a mother, Remus,’ she’d said firmly. ‘He can call me what he wants when he‘s old enough to decide himself. I don‘t want to force him into it.’

The little boy had called her Jess - until now.

‘I didn‘t say a word to him,’ Remus said now, holding up his hands at Jess’ narrowed eyes. ‘He’s done this on his own.’

Harry landed on the ground and Teddy jumped off the broom, running over to Jess.



‘Mum!’ he said excitedly. ‘I was driving the broom.’

Jess was speechless, but managed a nod then looked up at Remus.

‘Teddy,’ he said, drawing the little boy to him. ‘Don’t you want to call Jess ‘Jess’ anymore?’

Teddy looked at him. ‘Andrew said she’s my mum and I‘m s‘posed to call her mum,’ he said, referring to one of his nursery friends. Remus smiled and hugged the little boy to him.

‘Well, you have two mums, remember? You can call Jess ’Jess’ or ‘mum’. What would you like to call her?’ he asked.

‘Will the babies call her ‘mummy’?’ he asked and Remus nodded.

Teddy smiled then turned to Jess. ‘Did you see me on Uncle Harry’s broom, mum?’ he said, detaching himself from his father and catching sight of the treats on the table. ‘Ooh! Can I have a cake?’

Jess grabbed him and kissed him, and he giggled. ‘You are a wonderful little boy, Teddy Lupin,’ she said, giving him a cake.

He grinned at her, then ran off to share his food with a gnome.



‘Excuse me,’ Jess said, struggling to her feet and going inside. She went into the bathroom and burst into tears, touched by Teddy’s decision to call her his mother. Remus opened the door and smiled at her, moving into the small room to hug her.

‘He loves you, Jess,’ he said softly. ‘You’re his mum.’

She laughed and wiped her eyes. ‘Ow!’ she said, putting a hand to her belly.

‘Kicking?’ he said and she nodded.

‘They have to be boys,’ she muttered, rubbing her side. ‘Girls would never torture someone like this.’



Remus laughed and pulled her close again. ‘Do you want to go home?’ he asked and Jess nodded.

‘I think so,’ she said wearily. ‘I’m a bit emotional today.’

He kissed the top of her head and put his hand over her enlarged belly soothingly. ‘It’ll all be worth it, Jess,’ he said and she nodded again.

‘I know,’ she sighed then gasped softly.

‘What?’ he asked, pulling away. Jess looked up at him with a frown and let out a breath. ‘I think my waters just broke,’ she said.



For a moment he looked confused then his eyes widened. ‘It’s too early,’ Jess said, her voice becoming panicked. ‘Remus, it’s too early.’

He nodded and took her shoulders. ‘It’s fine, Jess,’ he said, trying to stay calm. ‘The healers said you might go into labour early.’

He stopped for a moment, thinking then Jess cried out, holding her belly and bending slightly.

‘Shit!’ Remus cursed, rubbing her arms until the pain had gone. ‘Come on,’ he said firmly. ‘We’re going to the hospital.’

There was a flurry of activity when Remus broke the news and Molly shooed them off quickly, agreeing to deliver Teddy to his grandmother’s as agreed.



Three hours later, Remus appeared in the waiting room of the hospital where Molly, Bill and Harry stood up quickly.

‘One of each,’ he said with a broad smile and his visitors all grinned, Molly rushing forward to hug him.

‘How’s Jess?’ she asked and Remus grinned.

‘Sore,’ he said. ‘Not overly impressed with me right now. After the first baby was born, she took a vow of celibacy.’

Bill and Harry laughed and Molly glared at them. ‘You lot try carrying and passing two babies then you can laugh,’ she said and they bit their lips. ‘When can we see them, Remus?’



‘Now,’ he said, moving back towards the room. ‘The nurses were just finishing bathing the babies when I came out.’

They crept into the room to see Jess sitting up, looking a little stunned as she stared down at the two bassinettes. They exchanged hugs and congratulations and then cooed at the tiny babies.

‘They’re so little, Jess,’ Harry said, looking nervous as Remus placed their newborn son in his arms.

‘They didn’t feel so little an hour ago,’ she muttered and he grinned.



Molly was holding the little girl, hinting to Bill about how much she’d love to be a grandmother. Bill was looking a little shifty and Remus recognised the signs of a man trying to keep a secret.

‘I don’t think Molly’s going to have to wait too much longer for that grandchild,’ he whispered to Jess as he sat down next to her on the bed. She smiled and he kissed her. ‘You did so beautifully, Jess,’ he said softly, stroking her face gently. ‘They are gorgeous.’

Her smile broadened and she nodded. ‘They are, aren’t they?’



After a few more minutes, the visitors left and Remus was lying in the bed next to Jess holding his sleeping newborn son, watching her feeding their little girl.

‘This is harder than it looks,’ she frowned, wincing as the baby breastfed. ‘I see bottles in our future.’

Remus smiled and kissed her shoulder, stroking a finger down the baby’s head. ‘She’s lovely,’ he murmured, and Jess smiled in agreement.

‘She has your nose,’ she said, and he beamed.

‘Your mouth,’ he said, kissing her again. ‘They are a lot alike, aren’t they?’ Jess burped the baby as he put his baby boy in his cot.

‘They are twins I suppose,’ Jess said, handing Remus their daughter and covering herself with a sigh.



‘Tired?’ he asked, putting the baby back in the bassinette. She nodded and leant back on the pillows. Remus stared down at his son, pulling the bassinette closer and sitting on the bed again.

‘I have another name,’ he said, looking at Jess.

‘Let’s hear it,’ she said, shifting with a grimace.

‘Michael,’ he said, watching her closely. Jess went still, staring at him for a moment before looking down at the baby. ‘Michael Lupin,’ she said softly then nodded. ‘I like it.’ She kissed Remus and said, ‘Thank you.’

He grinned and looked at their daughter. ‘One down, one to go,’ he said, watching the wriggling baby. ‘How about Hope? As in I never gave up hope that we’d be together again?’

Jess smiled. ‘Hope. Hope Lupin.’ She bit her lip then nodded. ‘Yeah, I think that’s appropriate.’ Remus smiled.



Andromeda appeared the next morning with Teddy, who rushed over to Jess with a concerned look on his face.

‘Where are the babies?’ he said, patting her belly. Jess laughed and kissed him.

‘Look at Daddy,’ she said, and he turned to see Remus sitting near the window, feeding Hope a bottle with Michael asleep in his bassinette.

‘Hi, Ted,’ he said softly. ‘Come and meet your baby brother and sister.’



Teddy frowned at the sight of the babies. It was one thing for them to be in Jess’ belly, but a whole other thing for them to be out and taking up spaces previously belonging only to him. Andromeda was standing back but came forward now to guide Teddy over to his father.

‘This is your brother, Michael,’ Remus said, putting his hand on the bassinette as he finished feeding his daughter. Teddy looked at him with a frown.

‘You’re a big brother now, Teddy,’ Jess said, sliding off the bed with a tiny groan and coming over to sit with Remus on the sofa. ‘Maybe grandma could help you give him a cuddle.’



Andromeda looked startled, but smiled before reaching over to pick up Michael. Remus stood to allow her and Teddy to sit down, and together they looked at the baby, Andromeda thawing seeing Teddy gently touching the baby. After a minute or two, Teddy crawled off her lap and put his hands up for Jess to pick him up. She did and gave him a cuddle. Remus crouched next to them, holding Hope.

‘And this is your little sister, Ted,’ he said softly. ‘This is Hope.’

Teddy touched the little girls face and smiled. ‘She’s pretty,’ he said. ‘Like mummy.’



Remus looked up at Jess quickly, then glanced over at Andromeda to see how she took hearing Teddy call Jess mummy.

‘Molly told me yesterday that he’d started calling Jess ‘mum’,’ she said with a tense smile. ‘I…I understand it was his choice.’

She stood up and put a sleeping Michael back in the bassinette. ‘They are beautiful, Jess. Congratulations, both of you. I…I’m going to leave you all alone for a little while.’



As she left the room, Remus stood and looked down at Jess, who nodded. He put Hope in her bed then followed Andromeda, calling out to her.

‘Are you alright?’ he asked, and she looked startled.

‘I’m fine,’ she said with a half smile.

‘No one prompted Teddy to start calling Jess ‘mum’,’ he said. ‘He decided to do it all on his own…’

She nodded and said, ‘I know. He told me last night that he had two mothers, but that his ‘Mummy Tonks’ was an angel, and that Jess did ’mummy things’ with him and he wanted her to be his mother too.’



Remus smiled a little, wondering when his son became so grown up. ‘You’re Teddy’s grandmother, Andromeda,’ he began, bringing up a topic he and Jess had discussed. ‘I know you never approved of my marriage to Tonks and that you’ve never particularly….taken to me, but Jess and I would like you to consider being a grandmother to Hope and Michael as well as Teddy.’

She frowned and looked taken aback. ‘I’ll understand if you say no,’ he continued. ‘The twins are not your blood, but Teddy is, and they are his siblings. They won’t have any grandparents and if you were willing, we’d like you to consider playing that role for them.’



Andromeda turned and sat in a chair in the waiting room, Remus moving to sit next to her. ‘I’ve never disliked you, Remus,’ she said, looking at him. ‘It was the…stigma that came along with your disease that concerned me, as well as the fact you had nothing to offer Dora. You were poor and so much older than her, and…Dora told us about the woman that you still loved, and I was concerned that you were marrying my daughter for convenience.’ Remus opened his mouth to object, but Andromeda got in first.

‘I know you didn’t,’ she said. ‘I know you cared for her, even grew to love her. But I also know you weren’t in love with her. You were never…lit up around Dora the way you are around Jess.’



She stood up again and took a deep breath. ‘I thought it would be harder - seeing you move on, seeing the babies today. But I’m alright. I appreciate the fact that you and Jess have included me in your lives, and that you want me to take an active role in your children’s lives. I think that’s what has made this easier for me. I would like to be the children’s grandmother, Remus. Thank you for thinking of me.’

Remus smiled and stood up. ‘Then you’ll come back and spend some time with your grandchildren?’ he said and she smiled.

‘I would like that,’ she said quietly and they walked back to the room together.



Jess was breastfeeding Michael, Teddy watching bemused. She looked up as they walked in and grinned. ‘Teddy just compared me to a cow,’ she said, and Remus laughed.

‘Well, there are some similarities…’ he began but stopped when he saw her glare. ‘Joking, sweetheart.’

He pulled a chair over for Andromeda and picked up Teddy, sitting down and settling him on his lap. Hope let out a cry and Remus was about to stand up when Andromeda stood, picking up the baby and sitting down with her, rocking her gently. Jess looked over at Remus, who nodded with a small smile.



Coming home a few days later was a production, and settling into a routine took several more weeks. Remus and Jess felt like zombies, taking turns to get up for the twins at night exhausting them. Andromeda came to stay with her during Remus’ transformations, and the two women were beginning to grow closer. Finally, when the twins were four months old, Remus woke up one morning and realised that they’d slept through the night for the first time, and therefore he and Jess had slept through the night. Teddy was also still asleep, which was an added bonus. He yawned and grinned, rolling over to look at Jess. It had been a long time since they’d been able to make love - the last time a week or so before Jess gave birth. His body stirred as he watched her sleep and he decided to make the most of their children’s sleep in while he had the chance.



Ducking his head under the covers, he wasted no time, pulling down her underwear and running his hands up Jess’ thigh to touch her gently. He heard her moan when his fingers stroked her, and her hips rose. Moving so he could touch his tongue to her, he smiled when he heard Jess’ gasp and her breathing became heavy.

‘Remus,’ he heard her whisper and in another minute she tried to muffle her cry as spasms ran through her body, her hands twisting in his hair.



She was still breathing hard when he emerged from under the sheets, grinning at her. Jess laughed and pushed him over onto his back and climbed on top of him.

‘They slept through,’ she mumbled as she kissed his neck and he nodded.

‘How much longer do you think we’ve got?’ she asked, pushing his boxer shorts down to his knees so he rubbed against her, making him feel weak.

‘I’m only gonna need a minute or two,’ he said faintly, then bit his lip as a moan escaped him. Jess sank down on him, groaning as he filled her.



‘Fuck, have you really had two children?’ he gasped, feeling her body squeezing him hard.

‘Do you seriously want to talk about our children now?’ she asked as she began to move. Remus moaned loudly and grabbed her ass.

‘Point taken,’ he said softly, arching up as Jess came down on him.

She moved quickly, and when he grabbed her head and pulled her down to him for a kiss, she exploded on him, Remus trying to muffle her scream with his mouth. The sound of her pleasure knocked him over the edge and his fingers bit into her ass as his vision blurred, his release incredibly powerful.



Jess fell down onto him, and he held her tight as their breathing slowed. ‘Oh my god,’ Remus muttered and she laughed.

‘My thoughts exactly,’ she said, looking up with a smile. He leaned forward and kissed her.

‘Have I told you lately how very much I love you, Mrs Lupin?’ he whispered and Jess smiled broadly.

‘Every night,’ she said, kissing him. ‘But I can never hear it too much. I love you too.’



There was a squeal from the hall and their bedroom door burst open and Teddy ran in, stopping when he saw Jess on top of Remus.

‘What are you doing?’ he asked, looking at them quizzically.

‘Ah, I’m just giving Daddy a big cuddle,’ improvised Jess, shifting as she felt Remus pulling up his boxers hastily, letting out a soft sigh when he slid out of her body.

‘Oh,’ said Teddy, accepting the explanation and clamouring onto the bed.

Jess grabbed her underwear quickly and moved to pull them back on as Teddy gave Remus a cuddle too. She leaned over and gave him a kiss before grabbing her wand and going to the bathroom, hearing the twins ‘talking’ to each other when she came out.



She went into the nursery, picking them both up awkwardly and taking them into her bedroom. Teddy, hair bright blue, bounced excitedly when he saw them, and Remus held out his arms and took Hope off Jess, laying her on his chest and kissing her head. Jess settled Teddy down and handed him Michael carefully, Remus watching him closely as Jess Summoned two bottles and heated them with her wand. They fed the babies while Teddy watched, chattering about his upcoming third birthday and the gifts they should consider getting him.



Remus sighed in satisfaction, looking down at his daughter, who stopped sucking her bottle to smile back at him. Her smile was so much like Jess’, as was Michael’s. Both children looked like their mother; although Hope had his nose, and Michael had his eyes, but the rest of their features came from Jess. Teddy was nearly three now, and looking more like him. He had Tonks’ nose, when he wasn’t altering it, having learnt now how to morph his features just like his mother.



Jess stood up and walked down to the kitchen, Remus watching her ass as she did.

‘How did I ever get so lucky?’ he wondered, watching Teddy talking to his brother, Mikey kicking his legs in delight, reaching out for Teddy’s blue hair. Jess returned with a drink and toast for Teddy, and a cup of tea for him. She took Hope but he stopped her walking away by grabbing her hand.

‘I am a very lucky man,’ he said softly, watching a smile form on her lips.

‘Yes, you are,’ she murmured, leaning over. ‘And I am a very lucky woman.’ She kissed him, letting it linger until they heard Teddy giggling.

‘I love you,’ said Jess, against his lips. ‘Love you too,’ he said.