It Has To Get Worse Before It Gets Better

st Mungos

"Apollo! Come down here Apollo!"
Apollo ran down the stairs and into the kitchen, where his dads were drinking their coffee. "Yeah? What is it?" He said. "We just flooed a witch at st Mungos, and they want you to go in, to see if you're alright." Apollo's expression changed quickly. "It's ok pup, it's just a check up to make sure you're recovering well." Remus assured him. "Why can't I just go to Hogwarts? Surely poppy can do it?" Apollo asked nervously. Sirius smiled sympathetically and held out his hand for Apollo to hold. "They want you to see the professional healers cub. But you'll be okay, we'll be there with you." Apollo smiled a little bit. "So when do we have to go?" He asked. "We'll leave at 4. That way we'll make the half past appointment."
"Where are you going?" A voice said from behind Apollo. He turned around to see his best friend, Ron. "I have to go to st Mungos." Apollo grumbled.
"Nothing too bad I hope?" Said Ron.
"No, it's just a check up. You know, to make sure I'm recovering or whatever..."
"Oh ok. Do you have any chocolate milk here Sirius?"
"Um, I don't know. Have a look in the fridge if you like."
Ron looked confused. "What's a fridge?" He said. Apollo laughed. "It's a muggle kitchen appliance. It keeps good cold without having to put a cooling charm on it." He explained. Ron went over to the fridge hesitantly and pulled open the door. He was hit with a blast of cold air and stumbled backwards, making every one laugh. "You really need to get used to muggle things Ron." Apollo laughed. "Shut up Apollo."

At 10 to 4, Sirius, Remus and Apollo were getting ready; getting their shoes and cloaks on and saying goodbye to the Weasleys. Apollo was just tying the laces on his shoe when he felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist. He leant back and turned his head to see who it was. It was Fred. "See you in a bit gorgeous." He said, and Apollo smiled. "See you later."
"I'm going to miss you my love." He murmered in Apollo's ear, sending shivers down his spine. Apollo turned around and snuck his arms around the elders neck, pressing their foreheads together. "I'll miss you too. But I'll be thinking about you the whole time I'm there, so it won't be so bad." He whispered, making Fred smirk. "Don't think about me too much my love, you'll forget what you have to say." He said.
"Ahem..." someone cleared their throat.
Apollo pulled away from Fred, both of them going bright red. "Are you quite finished?" Sirius said, hand on his hips.
"I- um..." Apollo quickly pulled on his other shoe and stood up. "I'm ready." He said. He gave quick hugs to Molly and Hermione, saying goodbye and such. He went to hug George like he had the other two, but couldn't help himself, and threw his arms around his neck. "See you later." He said, he voice muffled by his hoodie. George put his arms around Apollo and leant down to his ear. "Try not to worry too much beautiful, it'll be over before you know it." Said George, rubbing his fingers in little circles on Apollo's side, under his hoodie. "I'll try," he mumbled, hugging him tightly. "Can't make any promises." George kissed the side of his neck and let Apollo down. "You'll be fine. And we'll be here when you get home waiting for cuddles!" George said brightly, booping his nose. Apollo beamed and headed over to his dads by the door. "See you all later then." Sirius said, and they left.

As they walked hand in hand to the entrance of st Mungos in the middle of London, Apollo was getting increasingly nervous. He really didn't know what to expect, and didn't quite like the idea of talking to a load of people about things he'd rather forget. His fingers felt numb in his dads' hands as he walked on legs that felt like jelly. "There's nothing to worry about angel," Sirius said, noticing his nervousness. "They'll just ask a few questions, we can answer if you can't, and you don't have to do anything you don't want to, okay? We'll be there with you the whole time." Apollo nodded, feeling slightly better.
When they arrived at st Mungos, Apollo looked up at the building, it was a grand place, fitting for what went on inside. Of course, it just looked like a tatty and run down old place to muggles, but he couldn't see that.
They headed inside, and approached the desk at the front. A witch with her hair in a bun smiled at them and asked how she could help. "We're here for Apollo Black-Lupin's 4:30 appointment with a healer to see how he's recovering." Sirius stated. The witch smiled and gestured to the waiting area. "Take a seat and a healer will be with you shortly."
The three sat themselves down and waited.
"Apollo Black-Lupin?" A wizard in a white coat called out. Sirius stood up, and pulled Apollo up with him. They all followed the white coat wizard down a few corridors and stairs and ended up in a doctor type office. The wizard presented 3 chairs for them to sit in.
"So, Apollo. How are you? Are you enjoying your new home and family?"
The white coat wizard smiled, showing his flashy white teeth, matching his coat perfectly. Apollo fidgeted nervously. "It's um... i- it's great, thanks." He said in a small voice. The white coat wizard smiled his flashy smile once again and the self-writing quill on his desk scribbled down some notes.
"Now, the first thing I want to discuss is how you're recovering. How have you been feeling since you were let out of healer care?" Apollo looked to his fathers for help, who smiled encouragingly. "Fine." He said shortly.
"He's been well. Recovering quickly. He was ill for a couple of days not long ago, but nothing more than a common cold." Remus expanded.
"How is your appetite?"
Apollo shrugged. "Fine."
"He has a rather small appetite for his age, but we are making sure he gets fed well."
"And how have you been sleeping?"
This struck Apollo like a hammer to the head, he didn't want to tell the strange white coat wizard that he had been having nightmares almost every night, or that he slept with a lamp on because he got scared in the dark. He didn't like this one bit. The white coat wizard took his silence as a negative answer and directed the next question at his dads. "How has he been in the night? Any nightmares or bed-wetting?"
Sirius shook his head. "He gets nightmares regularly and sleeps with a lamp on. No bed-wetting at all." The quill scribbled this all down.
"And are you getting your memory back of the incident?"
"Sort of... I can remember some things, mostly it turns up in... in nightmares." He trailed off.
The wizard nodded.
"Any fatigue? Or nausea? Or perhaps dizzy spells?"
"He's been more fatigued, but it's starting to wear off. As far as i know he hasn't had nausea or dizzy spells since we left hogwarts." Sirius said.
A few awkward questions later, and three pages of notes from the quill, the white coat wizard said that he would send in a creature inheritance specialist to talk about his inheritance and mates. He left the room with one last flash of his smile and left the three in there.
"You're doing so well my darling. " Remus said to Apollo, rubbing his thumb over his knuckles. Sirius wrapped his arm around his shoulders and pulled Apollo towards himself. "It's nearly done, not long now and then we can get home, alright? You've been so brave." Apollo squeezed his eyes shut and leant into his dad. "It's just... I don't like talking about it. And they're asking me all these questions expecting me to say I'm fine but I-" he sucked in a breath sharply, willing himself not to cry. Not here, not now. He couldn't make a fool of himself in front of the healers. "Oh sweetheart. It's okay, you're going to be alright." Apollo hid his face in Sirius' front and breathed in lungfulls of his scent. He smelled like home and it calmed him down. He felt Remus running his hand up and down his back, and Apollo felt like so long as they were there, nothing could hurt him.
The door of the doctors office flung open and a witch in red and white uniform came in. Apollo sat back in his seat properly and wiped his eyes on his sleeve.
"I am healer Jones, but you can call me Nancy. I am a creature inheritance specialist. " She said with a smile, her smile was a lot more welcoming and kind that the white coat wizard's, she seemed nice. Apollo nodded respectively and gave as much of a smile as he could muster. Nancy sat herself down and pulled out a regular clipboard and quill, not like the self-writing one the wizard had. "You don't have to be nervous, dear. How about you start by telling me your full name and birthday." Apollo fidgeted and began to speak. "I'm Apollo Corvus Ace Black-Lupin, and I was born on the 18th September 1980." Nancy wrote this at the top of the parchment.
"Okay, and do you know exactly what creature you are?" She asked. Her voice sounded as if she was speaking to a small child, but Apollo didn't mind. It meant he didn't have to act mature and like he wasn't scared out of his wits.
"I- I'm part neko, part fallen angel."
"And could you tell me, have you found your mate/s yet? And if so, who?"
At this question, Apollo felt a little lighter. "I've found my mates. They're Fred Weasley and George Weasley. They're twins, and they're very nice." He smiled genuinely for the first time since he had been there. Nancy smiled, happy that Apollo was coming out of his shell a bit. She decided, to make him more comfortable, to ask him more about his mates.
"Tell me about them. What do they look like? Their personalities? How you met them?"
"They're my best friends brothers. I knew them before. They're both taller than me, and both ginger. They are identical twins, but I can tell them apart easily. Fred is a little bit taller, and his nose it not as round as George's. George's hair goes further down the sides of his face, and he has darker freckles across his nose. Both of them are pranksters, always getting into trouble at school, but I like it. They're sweet and funny and... and I love them." He slapped his hands over his mouth after what he said last. He felt his face go red and covered it with his sweater-pawed hands. Nancy chuckled a bit. "They sound lovely. I'm glad you found them so soon, I believe having found your mates already has aided your recovery, which is why you're getting better so quickly." Apollo uncovered his face to see both his dads and Nancy looking at him with huge grins on their faces. He returned it sheepishly.
"Right, now. I am going to ask you something now which you might not be comfortable with. All I ask is you try your best and don't worry if you really can't okay? I won't hurt you, and I'm not going to do anything you don't want me to. You can trust me."
This made Apollo nervous. What was she going to ask? What was he going to have to do?
"If you're comfortable with it, I would like you to take off your hoodie and let out your wings." Nancy asked kindly. Apollo gripped the sides of the chair until his knuckles were white. He really really didn't want to do this. If he took his hoodie off, she would see him. All the scars and marks and words cut and burnt into his skin forever, she would see it all. He didn't want that. He knew he hadn't answered her, and wasn't even looking at her, but he didn't care. He was staring at the floor, but it began to blur and distort until he didn't know where he was looking. Apollo vaguely heard his name being said but he couldn't reply. He just sat there, frozen and numb.
"Apollo, cub, come on. You're okay, you're safe. It's alright." He heard someone say. Was it Sirius? Was it Remus? No one else called him cub. Apollo reached out blindly for something to hold onto, and found a hand slide underneath his and lace their fingers together. He tightened his grip on the hand and pulled it towards him, still not knowing quite who's hand it was.
"That's it, calm down. No one's going to hurt you." That's Remus.
"Papa..?" Apollo croaked. The hand squeezed his and he heard the voice confirming. Apollo's eyes came back into focus and he found that he had pulled his knees up to his chest at some point, and was now curled up half sideways, gripping onto Remus' hand like a lifeline. "There you go, good job. You're good, you're okay."
Apollo slowly uncurled, until he was sat somewhat normally in the chair again. He noticed that Nancy was still there, but she had backed up respectively. Oh fuck, she must've saw that whole ordeal. She probably thinks I'm an idiot. Apollo thought. Nancy moved back to the desk slowly, as not to startle him. She didn't say anything, just let Sirius and Remus ask.
"It's fine, you don't have to show your wings, that's alright."
Apollo looked up steadily. "N- no I w- want t- to... I just..."
He took in a shaky breath.
"It's alright, take your time."
"I don't w- want you t- to see... it..." He whispered, gesturing to himself.
"Oh honey," Nancy cooed, "It's alright. It's only your dads and me. I promise I'm not going to judge you, I've seen it many times before." Apollo thought about it. She was kind, she wouldn't laugh at him or tell him he deserved it, that's her job. And she was right, it was only her, and he had his dads right there with him. He looked up at Nancy and gave a little nod. She smiled her kind smile and began to speak quietly. "Would you like me to turn around while you take your jumper off? " he nodded again and Nancy spun around in her chair. With an encouraging look from both his fathers, Apollo pulled his hoodie over his head and held it to his chest. He instantly felt cold, and a crippling sensation spread throughout his body, hating the fact it was on show.
"Tell me when I can turn around." Nancy reminded him. Apollo took a deep breath and told her she could turn back around. When she did, he was pleasantly surprised that she didn't react at all to the scars she could quite clearly see. Although he was clutching his hoodie to his chest, it didn't cover everything. "When you're ready, you can let out your wings."
Apollo concentrated, and sure enough, two beautiful silver wings sprouted out of his back. Nancy beamed. "That's great. You did well."
He felt Remus and Sirius both squeeze his hands. "You did brilliantly, you're so good."
Nancy stood up from her chair, making Apollo flinch back. She apologised and assured she wouldn't hurt him, then asked if she could touch them to make sure they were healthy. Apollo reluctantly agreed and stood up in front of her. She put on rubber gloves and began to check his wings. She ran her hands along the top and down the back, stretching out the joints and pressing down on muscles. Although he didn't like it one bit, Apollo stood still and waited it out. She quickly wrote down what she had gathered from the inspection and said he could sit back down.
"Your wings are very impressive Apollo. They are also healthy and in good shape, so nothing to worry about. I recommend you let them out and stretch them at least twice a day, so that they don't seize up. It is painful and not good for them to be inside all the time." Apollo nodded along with what she was saying.
"And you should groom them too. Brush through them, pulling out any dead feathers and cleaning the dirt off them. This is something you can do, but it is hard to do by yourself. If someone else does it, it has to be someone you trust, and someone you are close with. Your mates for instance." Apollo felt the blush creep onto his face.
"Of course, when you are ready you can try flying, just be safe and practice before you fly anywhere too high. You may not get it straight away, but keep trying, there is yet to be anyone that has failed to learn how to fly. "
She carried on talking about his wings and safety with them and how to customise clothes to fit them. She went over how his new ears worked and about his tail, and any other characteristics he would have inherited. He listened along until she was finished and hastily put his hoodie back on.
"Now, the other healer is going to come back in and talk to the adults, or one of you, and then you can go." And with that, Nancy left the room and in came Mr white coat wizard. "Could I talk to you gentlemen?" He asked Sirius and Remus. Apollo looked at them worriedly, not wanting to be left alone.
"If you prefer, I could just talk to the one of you?" He suggested. Sirius nodded and stood up.
"You two stay here, I'll be right back." He gave Remus a peck on the lips and kissed Apollo's forehead before following white coat wizard out of the office.

Remus pulled Apollo into a tight embrace. "You did so well my darling. I am so proud of you." Apollo sighed with relief. They sat close, not feeling the need to say much more.
"Ah, shit." Remus hissed. "What's wrong?"
"My shoulder is playing up, full moon stuff." He said, with a grimace like smile. Apollo was disheartened. "How far away is it?"
Remus counted the days in his head. "3 days away. It's not too bad this month, I'm okay." Apollo smiled a little, but inside he was now fretting about that too. How was he going to cope on the night of the full moon with both dads gone? He couldn't, he wouldn't. But he had to. For Remus, to show him he was brave and could do one night without them, and not break down. He would do it for Moony, and Paddy.

That was quite long. There's going to be a part 2 to this chapter don't worry :) not that you would... idk
A bit of domestic stuff plus an update on Apollo's situation idk
Btw, this is set in 1996, so Apollo is 15 right now. Atm it is like june-july time, so he will turn 16 in September.
Just in case I forgot to mention that, which I think I did. Apollo is 15 atm :))
Hope you had a good day
Byesiiesss