Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, they belong to the wonderful JK Rowling... I'm just having a little play around with them ;)

Thanks for all the comments so far. I've been away, hence why it's taken so long to update. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

Remus didn't sleep well at all that night. He had tossed and turned and woke several times and had been relieved when he was woken at 7am and got ready for work. His largely sleepless night had been good for at least one thing- he now had a plan. Even if Hermione was still angry at him, which was incredibly likely, she would have to spend the day with him in a confined space. Unless she was willing to turn her wand on him, she would have to speak to him at some point. Though, he wasn't naïve enough to think she definitely wouldn't turn her wand on him- he just thought it was probably unlikely.

He entered the kitchen to find it surprisingly empty. Hermione was always down before he was, she would usually be reading the daily prophet at this time and then would inform him of anything noteworthy. Maybe she had just over slept.

"Morning Molly. Any sign of Hermione this morning?" he asked as casually as he could.

"Yes dear, she was up and out early, just as she said last night" she replied. He felt dejected by the idea that she had left without him and not mentioned it to him. It seemed she was still angry with him.

Remus walked into work and into their office, fully expecting to see an angry Hermione sitting at their desk. However, she was nowhere to be found in the office. It was exactly as he had left it yesterday, there was no note, no memo, no anything to suggest she had been here. Though he hated doing it, he inhaled deeply but couldn't pick up her scent, only the usual smells of parchment, ink, old books and himself. He wondered out to the head of the departments office.

"Mr Fawley, sorry to disturb you but have you seen Hermione this morning at all?" William Fawley was the descendent of Hector Fawley, the Minister for Magic back in the 20s. Though of pureblood status, Fawley was generous and kind and would give anyone a chance to explain themselves, which made him the perfect head of this department.

"Why yes, she came to see me earlier and asked for an extension of her work with Hagrid. Though she was able to study a unicorn that Hagrid had found for her, she wanted to study them in their own environment so she will be out for the rest of the week, apart from the weekly meeting of course." He smiled.

"Thank you Mr Fawley." Ok so she was definitely angry. Well whether she liked it or not, she would have to face him at some point.

Hermione finished her tea with Hagrid and started the walk into the Forbidden Forrest with him. They chatted lightly about Harry and Ron but Hagrid could sense something wasn't quite right, particularly when she asked if he thought she could stay for dinner. She stated that it was 'for old time's sake' and that she was feeling nostalgic over the castle. She spent the day studying the unicorns and though by anyone else's standards it would have been a good day's work, by hers it was poor. When they finally retired for dinner, Hagrid finally plucked the courage up to say something.

"Are yeh ok Hermione?" he asked tentatively. She simply smiled back and nodded her head. He sighed lightly.

"How long have I known yeh?"

"7… 8 years now. Wow, that has gone quick!"

"Righ'. So don' you think I know when summin is up with yeh?"

"Oh Hagrid. It's stupid really" she smiled sadly. He gently elbowed her and sent her flying into the nearest tree. When she had regained her balance, she looked up into his concerned black eyes and sighed.

"I like this person. And I thought he really liked me, but now he has a date with someone else. The stupid part is, I hadn't told him I like him and he hadn't said anything to me. So why do I feel so betrayed?! I feel like he has cheated on me because we were so close when in fact he is a single man able to do what he wants with who he pleases!" she exploded and by the end of the sentence was red in the cheeks and was breathing heavier than normal. Hagrid let her rant and just listened until she had finished.

"Hermione, have yeh talked to him 'bout this?" he asked quietly, not wanting to set her off again.

"No."

"Do yeh think yeh should?"

"No. He has a date so it would only make things awkward."

"Aren' things awkward already?" there was a long pause after this in which Hermione was searching for words.

"The way I see it is tha' yer 'ave 2 options. 1- don' tell him, buh then yeh can't be angry with him if he don' know. Yeh though' he liked yeh but yer never asked so yer can't really assume. 2- tell him and see wha happens."

"I know you're right. But I'm still coming back here tomorrow. I need to think things through properly in my head before I say anything. Is that ok Hagrid? You're not getting bored of me?"

"Don' be silly!" and then he slung a very heavy arm over her shoulders which made her knees buckle.

By the time Remus got to bed that night, he was just angry. He hadn't seen or heard from Hermione all day and he thought the whole situation was starting to get out of hand. He understood that he had hurt her, but there was no need at all for this kind of reaction. They still had to be professional at work, if nothing else. And professional at work would mean knowing at least something about what she was doing with Hagrid as he would have nothing to present at the weekly meeting and he didn't even know if she would be there.

By the end of Wednesday, he just felt upset and empty. He missed her more than he cared to admit and it was hurting him not being able to see her every day. He missed having her close to him as they worked, he missed the way he could make her throw her head back when he really made her laugh and the twinkle in her eye when she made a break through at work. He was seriously considering taking the Floo to Hogwarts if he didn't see her soon but he knew that would just make things worse. He rolled over, fully accepting but not at all happy about the fact he would have another day without Hermione tomorrow.

The following morning, he dressed and headed down to breakfast without even bothering to look around the room when he entered. But then the scent hit him and he looked into the eyes of Hermione sitting in her usual seat next to his. She smiled warmly at him, and he knew this one wasn't forced. It lit up her face and reached her eyes in a way that made her even more beautiful. This was the smile that he had been waking up for for the past year and it was genuine.

"Good morning Remus. I have a lot to catch you up on!"