But she'll bring out the best
And the worst you can be
Blame it all on yourself
Cause she's always a woman to me
At the next order meeting, Hermione sat at the table, feeling restless. Still there had been no word from Remus, he had been gone nearly a fortnight at this time. It was not unusual for those on reconnaissance missions to go quiet but it had set Hermione on edge. She was not a nail biter by nature but all her nails had now been bitten down to the quick.
The general hubbub caused by a large crowd in a small room subsided as Dumbledore entered, looking a little concerned. "We have received news" he said loudly and the entire room listened carefully "that Voldemort" there were several stifled gasps "is on the move again. He's started recruiting people from outside the normal boundaries of magic. At the moment we have reason to believe that he's recruiting from the Giant colonies in the mountains of Bolivia and it's only a matter of time before he moves on to the vampires and werewolves."
Molly Weasley who was sat in the corner, let out a faint squeak. It was the first time Hermione had noticed her there, her brothers had been murdered two weeks ago and yet here she was. She looked thinner, older and more frightened and sad than ever and yet she was still here. A feeling of awe washed over Hermione as she suddenly realized how much courage that must have taken. It is a sadly overlooked fact that often, those who possess the most courage are not the great warriors on the battlefield but the people back at home who, despite everything, get up every morning, lift their heads up and keep going. In that instant this knowledge hit Hermione and she saw Molly in an entirely new light.
Dumbledore was still talking "we have people out there working to try and limit the damage he can do, but in this circumstance we may need some input from you Miss Granger?"
Hermione jumped, all eyes were suddenly on her and she felt herself growing hot under their gaze "well" her voice cracked, she had never been good at public speaking "in my time he tried to infiltrate the ministry of magic too. He's got followers in a lot of the most powerful families and they've got a lot more sway than they should have, you'll need to watch out for the Malfoys and the Lestranges especially"
Arthur Weasley nodded as though she had just confirmed everything he'd ever suspected.
Professor Dumbledore continued, stroking his beard in thought "Thank you miss Granger, we'll keep a close eye on them. Which reminds me, you yourself are likely to be a prime target for them, you should consider heightening the security on your flat"
Hermione sighed "It's already fully warded, there's really not much else we can do"
"We could always set up a guard" James suggested, frowning "It couldn't do any harm"
"It could make a very big difference" she ploughed on defiantly "It could be the difference between there being some one to watch the ministry or not. Believe me, the wards on my flat are pretty advanced, if they want to have a go they're going to anyway. If they break through the wards they'll have me to deal with"
"And good luck to them" said Mad-eye Moody eyeing her affectionately in the way one might look at a favorite but slightly dangerous niece.
Despite the efforts of many of the order members Hermione would not be moved and so the meeting was adjourned for the present. People gossiped easily, glad for a break from the tension. In the corner, Molly and Arthur played with their young sons. Hermione's eyes widened as she recognised a tiny Charlie, watching with wonder as an only slightly bigger Bill showed him and Percy a little card trick. She realised with a jolt that Mrs Weasley must already be around 6 months pregnant with the twins. It was strange and almost painful to see these innocent, unmarked little faces and know just what would be waiting for them 20 years down the line.
"Everything alright Miss Granger?" Dumbledore was stood just behind her
She jumped but nodded "It's so hard to know what will happen but not be able to say anything"
He sighed and his eyes looked very sad for an instant "Often the burdens that weigh heaviest on us are the ones no others can see"
Hermione could have cried but she had cried too much and too often, instead she said "Professor, have you heard from Remus at all?"
He shook his head gently "I have not. I do not doubt that he is well, though, he is far hardier than you think him"
As if in agreement a general shout rose around the room and several people sped to the door at once, landing in a pile in the doorway.
Hermione stared in amazement as Lily disentangled herself from the pile of bodies, James and Sirius followed and it was soon evident that they had thrown themselves at someone who had just entered the meeting. It was only when they stood up that she recognized him. Disheveled, tired and thin though he was she'd recognize Remus' face anywhere. He caught her eye and they both just stared for a moment.
"I'm..." he started, she knew somehow that he was beginning to apologize for their row, she shook her head
"I know, me too" she whispered and hugged him tightly. This was a moment and a feeling that she would remember for the rest of her life, being hugged tightly by a man she really cared for, nearly overwhelmed with relief and unable to express any one of the tangle of her thoughts. For now though, she was happy to enjoy it as it happened.
Christmas seemed to come quickly after that. As soon as they were all back in London they settled quickly into their natural rythm. Hermione had promised not to be quite so standoffish and was finally able to have a little fun. Between them she and Lily even managed to cook a christmas dinner. Originally James and Sirius had volunteered but Lily had gotten so annoyed with them that she had kicked them out of the kitchen almost imediately.
Hermione looked around her on christmas afternoon. Lily was dosing in an armchair, James and Sirius were playing a particularly boisterous game of exploding snap and Remus could be heard in the kitchen fixing a snack for himself. She allowed herself to feel really grateful for being so openly welcomed by such generous people. After a while she decided that what was missing from this scene was a really good glass of wine so she got up and, as quietly as possible, made for the kitchen. So absorbed was she in her desire for a drink that she ran straight into Remus.
"Oof" he said loudly and she leapt backwards blushing furiously
"Sorry" she whispered, falling over her own feet in her embarassment
"No don't be" he caught her forearm so that she wouldn't fall right over
There was a loud whoop from Sirius which almost tripped Hermione up again.
"Look who's under the mistletoe!" he shouted from his position on the floor and Hermione noticed that Lily and James were watching them with similarly mischievous glints in their eyes, she turned to look back at Remus
His eyes had taken on that same amber hue as the day when he'd cornered her in her towel. Instead of making her feel nervous though, this time the look just made her feel very warm "Well I hate to disappoint" he almost purred before his lips descended on hers and the rest of the world disappeared. Hermione did not read many novels, she did not believe that a good kiss would make you see fireworks and hear music. This kiss though made it damn near impossible to concentrate on anything else, if a marching band had passed her in that moment she wasn't sure she would have noticed.
There was a tentative knock on the door and Harry looked up, The Weasley twins were standing awkwardly in the doorway.
"Everything alright?" Harry asked, rubbing his tired eyes, it was nearly midnight
they nodded "we think we've had a bit of a breakthrough" George smiled
"With what?" he was so tired he was struggling to follow the thread of the majority of conversations
"With Hermione of course" Fred sighed "we've been approaching this from the wrong angle altogether"
A/N: Ok Ok, I've been gone for far far too long and I'm really sorry. I am home for the holidays and my parents are currently without the internet. Th good news is that I've basically drafted all the remaining chapters of this story now and I've even got a vague plan for a sequel. The olds are due to get their internet connection fixed on Monday so all being well I will be able to update again next week. In the meantime though, here's a taster of the next chapter as usual:
"So" Harry grinned excitedly "we can get her back again can't we?"