3

Discomforting Fun

It had taken them approximately two and a half proper weeks to clean the full house from start to finish. Hermione tried to re-clean everything, but Remus wouldn't let her and instead got some wizarding games out, but Hermione wasn't interested and instead brought out a deck of cards. Remus raised an eyebrow at her and she said, "Solitaire is fun. Do you know how to play Demon?"

Remus shook his head and said, "Poker and Crazy Eights. Lily taught me some muggle card games years ago, but Poker and Crazy Eights is all I remember, because I always won Poker and James loved Crazy Eights."

Hermione started to shuffle the cards and said, "Poker it is. Swords and Axes is the name of the game. If are holding a king or queen that is either holding a sword or axe, it's worth thirty points. I normally play until about one hundred twenty points but we could play for more or less, your call."

"One hundred twenty is good enough."

Hermione smiled and passed out the cards. Her first hand was good as it always was. She had a special luck when it came to this game and showed an impish smile that proved it. Remus returned the impish smile and looked back down at his cards; they were equally good. It wouldn't surprise me if they could read one another's mind because of how tuned in there ears were to an sign of exhaling or skipped heart beats or just a possible swear word to show if it was a good thing to fold or not.

"Your call," Hermione said, looking at Remus. He looked around and looked down in front of him. With a wave of his wind, chips appeared and soon he was betting all in. Raising her eyebrow, Hermione asked," All in on the first round? Come on, I've beaten experts at this game when I was ten."

Remus raised his own eyebrows at her and smiled. 'Well then, champion, are you in or do you fold?"

Hermione looked down at her cards and shrugged. "Why the hell not? I have a very small, puny chance." She laughed madly before pushing all her chips in.

Remus smiled and said, "You're a sucker for persuasion."

Hermione laughed and without thinking first, replied, "And you're a sucker for my growls."

Remus laughed heartily and shook his head; his face beat red with embarrassment from her comment. Hermione's face went pale even as she smiled and acted flippant. She spoke without thinking for the first time… ever!

Hermione placed her cards down, revealing a black flush. Remus stopped laughing and looked at his cards and looked back up at her. "We didn't need any cards; did you cheat with magic, Hermione?"

She looked at him with a disappointed look. "No, thank you but I refuse to cheat."

Remus looked at her skeptically, but looked back at his cards and shook his head, placing his hand down. Hermione leaned over in her chair and furrowed her brow and then started to laugh. Remus put his head back up and looked at her laughing face. He also had a black royal flush, but it wasn't the spades.

Hermione poked Remus with her foot under the table. "Cut it out Ms Granger." She made a face and said, "Now we're on last name terms again? Nice, then that means I can call you Professor Lupin again."

Remus grabbed foot under the table and pulled it lightly, not letting go. He started to tickle her foot, biting the side of his lip in a concentrated manor. Hermione started to laugh and tried to say, "Stop, please, don't go on!" but she only to the 'don't' part and Remus said, "Don't stop you say?"

He tickled her foot harder and Hermione withered under the table grabbed for his foot, tickling him. Remus let go almost instantly, but Hermione continued to tickle him. Now it was Remus telling her to stop. "Don't stop you say? Well if you insist…"

A loud bang was heard, making Remus and Hermione stop tickling and laughing all together. "Remus, what was that?" Hermione had pushed his chair back, making the chair screech across the flooring. She came up from under the table between his legs and looked up at Remus, her hands on his shoulders. He looked over the position she was in and before she could move, there was pecking at the window.

"It's an owl," Remus stated as he opened the window, letting a black owl in. Hermione instantly had a flashback and screamed when looking at the bird, running to her room. Remus thought she was kidding when he saw her freak out, but when his ears picked up crying, Remus knew it wasn't a game.

He picked the letter from the bird's talons and let it back out the window, walking over to Hermione's room. Remus knocked lightly and before he could stop himself, he walked in and looked at her backside. He caught himself staring at her rear-end, though he was soon sitting next to her and picking her up into his arms like a father would.

She cried silently into his shoulder, while Remus cried to help her calm down by saying everything is okay and everything will be all right. Hermione shook her head into his shoulder and placed her mouth around his shoulder, not biting, but just tasting it in a way.

Remus laughed when he noticed her biting his shirt and he looked over at her and asked, "What, do my shirts taste that good or something?"

Hermione started to laugh as she sat up next to him and shook her head. A look of surprise hit Remus' face and he asked, "Oh, so then I taste really bad, huh?"

Hermione smiled again and wiped away the tears and snot, shaking her head at him. "No, it's not that…"

"Then is it?"

Remus and Hermione's eyes met and suddenly, Remus knew everything by just looking into her eyes and Hermione knew everything by looking into his. They both tarred away quickly, blushing madly.

"Sorry," they both muttered at the same time and soon, Hermione was laughing at Remus and poking his shoulder. He poked her side and giggled like a little schoolgirl before attacking Remus with tickles. Before he knew it, he was on the ground with Hermione tickling him and Remus trying to say stop, but it came out in whoofs of air and so Hermione continued on until Remus had gotten a hold of her and soon, Hermione was jerking about on the floor because of how much it really… tickled! The owl and letter were lost along a certain point until Hermione saw it and shouted, "STOP! PLEASE GAWD, STOP!"

With that, Remus stopped and Hermione punched him hard in the shoulder. He gave her a pouting face as she gave him an impish look, taking the letter and ripping it open.

"What if that is confidential for me?" Remus asked, trying to take the letter back.

'Well, if it is, then it must be telling you about how horrible a tutor you are because we haven't even began on the lessons." Remus gave her a pouting face before trying and failing again with getting back the letter.

Hermione read the first two lines and her face fell. "This had better be a joke."

Handing the letter to Remus, he also read the first two lines and his face fell. There were only three lines, but the third line was about that they should keep inside of the cabin on the full moon.

"Hermione… maybe you should take the Wolfsbane."

Hermione shook her head; "Even you said it was a risk if I took, so I'm not going to!"

"Hermione-"

"Remus, no!" Looking at him in the eyes, she shook her head. A feeling of passion passed through them, but neither reacted, just blushed.

Hermione got up and paced the room. "Why do they want me though? What's so special about me? Wasn't Harry the one they wanted? I have enough pressure on me already! And we still haven't started practicing my school lessons. Great, just bloody wonderful. It's your fault! It has to be!"

Remus shook his head, "Hermione, its no one's fault but theirs. That man that the Deatheaters' follow, he isn't thinking straight, we all know this! Don't point fingers at anyone."

Hermione looked at him, her face emotionless. She sank to the floor not looking in any direction, just looking at the letter. Why would the Deatheater's want her? What was so special about her other than her being a werewolf now? Nothing, just nothing…

Remus shook Hermione's knee; she hadn't been speaking for twenty minutes now and it wasn't fooling him any. "Hermione, say something."

She looked up at him tears in her eyes. The memories and thoughts she had of Remus came at her all the way back from third year when she first met him. "I hate being a werewolf. You remember too damn much."

Remus nodded and said, "It's harder to be used to one thing all your life and then become another thing. Your not used to it-"

"And you are? How? Doesn't it bother you the things you remember and feel guilty about those things?" Hermione had a look of disbelieve on her face while the tears fell. This was one of those moments she would look back on and wish it never happened.

Stunned at the question, Remus shook his head slowly. "I don't like it any better than you, but coping comes with the package. Either you cope or even Wolfsbane won't help you control your mind at transformation. You almost have to forget."

Shaking her head, Hermione looked up at him. "I don't understand you, or… this!" She waved her hand over her body and Remus had the striking urge to kiss her. Jesus, what was his problem? Before he knew it, two long arms curled around his neck and his shoulder muffled her tears. "Remus… I thank you."

Wrapping his arms around her, he said, "Your welcome."