Bonding (Remus)

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Little Jasper gnawed on his toys that he had gained during the holidays from Magic Remus. On a short meeting, he liked him. And he knew his Mama liked him. He had not see her this happy...ever. She talked so fondly of him as she spoke about him to Jasper. She wrote her initials with his on her parchment. She moaned his name in the night.

The ferret smiled and listened for the door. His Mama had gone to the baths to clean up after her long time away from the school. She had put a spell on the door so if anyone knocked, he could answer it. But of now, he was happy with his toys.

[remuslupin]

Remus cast around the Gryffindor Common-Room to check if anyone was around to see, then slipped James' Invisibility Cloak over himself. He'd borrowed it from his friend with a vague excuse about having 'sneaky things to do' that he still couldn't believe the other boy had brought and now he was going to use it to get into Ferret's dorm room again. Either to welcome her back to the castle, or - if the rumour he'd heard about her being out and about elsewhere was true - to take a look around to get some ideas for presents for her birthday and their rapidly approaching date for Valentine's Day.

He already had one idea, but Remus was unsure if it wasn't too soon to be declaring his love to his girlfriend, even if she was the most wonderful girl he'd ever met. And so he performed a sticking charm on his boots, wrapped the cloak tightly around him and strode up the roof of the staircase to Ferret's dorm room door and knocked softly. "Ferret, you there? It's me, Remus."

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[talls]

Jasper looked up at the sound of the knock. He scurried beneath the blankets, poking his head out only to speak.

"Mama isn't here right now, please come back later." He was sure no one could understand him. No one did. Ever. Only his Mama really tried. Well, the Magic Remus understood him but his Mama told him he wouldn't be able to visit her room.

"No boys are allowed" she told him. Except him of course. He was special. Of course he was special! The American Lady said he was the main reason Mama got better so fast.

He was special! And no one could say otherwise.

[remuslupin]

At the sound of Jasper's voice coming from inside the room and announcing Ferret's absence, Remus chuckled softly, his sense of humour tickled by the idea of the little ferret - his new-found acquaintance and soon to become good friend, Remus hoped - acting as a social secretary, even when he knew full well that none of the humans would understand him.

"Is that you, little Jasper?" Remus said with a broad smile. "It's me - Magic Remus. I know your Mama isn't in, but may I come and visit you, my handsome little friend?" Leaning against the wall, Remus waited for a reply, whistling a happy song to himself as he did so.

He was glad that the Headmaster had allowed Ferret to bring Jasper to the castle. Not only did it mean he got to know her furry friend who already seemed like a wonderful friend to have but from all accounts it would help massively in her recovery from her breakdown, as Jasper's presence in the hospital had helped her to regain her equilibrium.

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[talls]

Jasper looked up and let off a smile and sat up in the covers of his Mama's bed.

"Hi Magic Remus!" Jumping off of the bed, the ferret dove for the spot he could push to open the door. "Magic Remus! Magic Remus!" he cried. He dove between his legs, wrapping around them a few times before running back to the bed.

"Magic Remus, the bed is comfy, come see! Come see!"

The little ferret bounced excitedly. "Mama is in the bathroom. She said she needed to get the bad smell off her from the white place. But! I got to be here and I got to bring my toys! See?" She showed off the toys Remus had given him for the holidays.

[remuslupin]

"Hello, little Jasper." Remus called through the door, before blinking in surprise as it swung open on its own. Stepping into the door, he noticed Jasper run up towards him and weave between his legs while calling out his name, and stooped down to scratch his little friend behind the ears.

Remus chuckled and walked over to join his friend on the bed. "For you, little Jasper, I will come and see." Settling down on Ferret's bed, Remus wriggled slightly to leave his scent on the covers for Ferret when she got back, then lay down on his back to provide his chest as a playground for Jasper and his toys.

Remus let out a little gasp as Jasper jumped around excitedly on his stomach, but smiled nonetheless. "Well, if that is where your Mama is then why don't you and I wait for her here." Chuckling softly, Remus felt a warm glow of contentment rising up within him at how excited and proud Jasper clearly was of the toys he had made for him.

"The toys I made you? Well I'm very glad you like them, little Jasper. And if you ever want some more, just ask." Remus scratched Jasper belly softly before raising his head to nuzzle him and give him a delicate kiss on the nose.

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[talls]

Jasper smiled as he made note at Magic Remus leaving his scent on the sheets of his Mama's bed. This made him happy. It meant that he wanted to be with his Mama a lot.

"Wait for Mama with me Magic Remus!" he called. "What are you doing here anyways Magic Remus? Did you come to see Mama? Did you come to make her feel better?"

For several weeks, he had smelled his Mama in heat. He knew that if a female was in heat, they could get really sick if they didn't mate.

He didn't want her getting sick. She was just getting better.

[remuslupin]

Remus chuckled at Jasper's rush of questions. He had suspected from Ferret's description of the little ferret's behaviour that this kind of insatiable curiosity was his usual way of being, and now had confirmation. "I came to find you and keep you company, little Jasper." Remus chuckled softly and chucked Jasper under the chin. "Though I was also looking for your Mama."

"Come to make her...?" Remus frowned and sat up slightly to look Jasper seriously in the eyes. "Why would she need to feel better? I thought your Mama had come back because she was all fixed." Stroking Jasper and placing an absent-minded kiss on his friend's head, Remus wracked his brain for what could possibly be wrong with his girlfriend.

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[talls]

The ferret made a sound of happiness as he was stroked and tickled. He liked being petted. It made him feel pretty. Or handsome, if he was going to be correct. He let out a happy yell as Remus told him he had come to see him, as well as his Mama. But at his confusion and sudden seriousness, he tilted his head to the side. Did he really not know?

"Mama is in heat," he said calmly, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "And if a female doesn't mate and make babies, she can get sick and die! I don't want Mama to die!"

[remuslupin]

Remus raised a quizzical eyebrow as Jasper cocked his head to one side and began to explain what was going on. But the ferret hadn't gotten more than a few words in before Remus blushed furiously, realizing that his girlfriend's pet ferret was trying to talk to him about sex. Again.

Spluttering slightly, Remus took deep breaths and tried to calm down, feeling the heat and redness of his blush fade from his cheeks. "It's okay little Jasper. Your Mama isn't going to die - I promise. Mating in humans, it-" He cut off and waved his hands vaguely in the air, not sure how to explain the facts of the birds and the bees to a ferret and not particularly comfortable doing so. "It's different." He settled for, finishing lamely.

"So even if your Mama is in-" Remus gulped as his voice cracked slightly, "Heat, she's going to be just fine, okay? So don't you worry." Burying his face in Jasper's fur to hide his blush, Remus nuzzled into his little friend while grabbing playfully at his tail to see if that was a game Jasper would enjoy.

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Jasper tilted his head to the side gently. "How do you know? Have you already mated with Mama?" he asked. "Was she happy after?"

As Remus grabbed his tail, Jasper attempted to nip at his hand playfully. Giggling, he chased Remus's hand and thus his tail.

But back to the topic at hand.

"Did you know Mama wants a harness?" he asked Remus. "When she looks at pictures, she smells extra in heat. Sometimes she moans and sometimes she says your name." He smiled up at Remus.

"That's good right? That means Mama wants to mate right? Are you going to mate with Mama?"

[remuslupin]

Remus face was burning so hot now that he longed for some water to cool himself down. Swallowing an exasperated sigh, Remus smiled at Jasper. "No little Jasper, your Mama and I haven't mated yet. We're still too young for mating. And I know because that is how humans work. They can go into heat and be safe."

Remus smiled as Jasper nipped at him playfully, and he pinched the end of Jasper's tail carefully in return to do his best to simulate the same action. Letting go of Jasper, Remus scratched behind his ears and under his belly with a happy smile.

As Jasper returned back to the previous subject, however, Remus began choking and spluttering in shock. He was certain that he had to have misunderstood - there was no way Jasper was telling him that Ferret wanted to be collared - but beyond that was the simple shock at having this conversation with anyone, let alone a still childish ferret. His face burning red, Remus managed to stutter out: "N-no I d-didn't know that."

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[talls]

Jasper smiled as his stomach as scratched. "But Mama has mated before. Not with a male but still. Is she older than you? Are you not old enough to mate yet?"

Human mating patterns had always fascinated him. He had no idea members of the same sex could get rid of heat. And that they could make the heat go away without his Mama being with child.

Tilting his head to the side, Jasper smiled as the Magic Remus said he didn't know his Mama wanted a harness.

"She has pictures!" he told him excitedly. Jumping from the bed, he pulled a string on a box to pull in out from under the bed. Using his front paws, he pushed off the lid and revealed the contents.

The box was filled with pictures. Some were from catalogs, showing collars and leashes. Others had images of a woman being collared but none of forcible sex or bondage that were usually associated with the action. The box smelled faintly of his Mama's heat.

"Mama says she likes the idea of being dominated but not forced," Jasper explained. "And, apparently, wearing a harness is a sign of complete submission. I don't know what that means for me when we go walking but..." he shrugged.

[remuslupin]

Remus sighed as he considered how to explain consent to a ferret. "It's not that simple. Because heat isn't dangerous for people, people can be old enough to be able to mate without being ready to mate. And your Mama felt ready to do so far earlier than I did. I still don't, in fact." He sighed, patting Jasper on the head, before asking: "Does that make any sense?"

As Jasper tilted his head to the side, Remus thought a silent prayer to Merlin that the little ferret would leave the subject at that. Sex wasn't something he was ready for - it wasn't something he was even particularly comfortable thinking about due to his furry little problem, and talking about it with his girlfriend's teenage ferret was definitely far outside his comfort zone.

But his hopes were dashed as Jasper pulled out a box from under Ferret's bed and pulled off the lid to reveal piles of pictures. As he realized what the pictures were showing, Remus began to hyperventilate, out of his comfort zone and rapidly loosing his composure. The scent of Ferret's desire and Jasper's matter-of-fact report of her feelings on the subject of collaring were the straw that broke the camel's back, and Remus began to feel faint, and then all of a sudden everything went black.

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[talls]

Little Jasper looked at Magic Remus to see him fall back on the bed. Jumping up again, he padded over to Remus.

"Magic Remus? Are you sleeping?" He nudged his face with his nose. Nothing. He pawed at his eyes. Still nothing. He nipped at his ears. Nothing still.

It was about this time Jasper began to panic. Had he killed the Magic Remus? How? Would his Mama be mad at him? What was he thinking, of course she would. She liked the Magic Remus! Panicking, he jumped up onto the male's chest, calling his name and pawing at him.

Pausing for a moment, the ferret noticed that the male's chest was rising and falling. Thinking for a moment, he smiled mischievousnessly. Moving towards his ear, Jasper spoke softly.

"Magic Remus, Mama arrived back in a towel and a bunch of males are staring and trying to come up the stairs."