I'm really really tired and the flu is – of course – going around. Euugh.
"Remus," Hermione hissed as he blinked innocently at her. They were sitting on the couch in the house the Order had given to Hermione, each reading separate books, but with Hermione's legs arched over his lap. He'd been absentmindedly moving his fingers up and down her legs, and as she'd been in shorts it was driving her insane, but he didn't seem to notice.
"What?" he asked curiously.
"You're driving me mad," she frowned.
He arched an eyebrow, "How?"
She soon realized that he didn't know he'd been doing it and grinned, rolling her eyes and moving her legs, "Nothing. Don't worry about it." He looked at her curiously for a moment more before shaking his head and going back to his book. He blinked when she moved and placed her head where her legs had previously been, bringing her book with her and making him smile down at her. She smiled when his fingers began to trace her face, going down her nose and across her eyelids and over her lips.
After he'd been doing this for a few minutes, he leaned down and pecked her forehead, grinning, "Driving you crazy yet?"
She smiled and sat up, moving to sit in his lap and lean into his chest, "Nope." He chuckled and wrapped an arm around her waist as she folded the corner of her page and set her book aside. She danced her fingers up his arm and slowly walked them up and down his chest, making him hide his smile in her hair. After a few minutes of this, he sighed and set his book aside, threading her hair through his fingers lightly and pulling her head back. She saw the smirk and gave a triumphant grin, especially when he gave up and placed his lips on the side of her neck.
"I win," she hummed, running her hands through his hair as he chuckled and hugged her closer.
"Alright, I've got her notes," Remus announced, walking into James's house and setting them on the dining room table.
"Ooh, she checked off the ones she's already killed, brilliant," Sirius smiled, shifting through the pieces of paper, "That helps loads."
James winced, "Guys, do you really think this is a good idea? I mean, Hermione barely let us go near the basilisk, what makes you think she'll – "
"She won't find out," Sirius scoffed.
"Oh, yeah, she'll just get to wherever it is, see it's missing and not immediately know," James frowned, "Maybe we should just get Hermione to let us help her. She obviously needs it."
"Of course, she does," Remus said, "But she won't let me. So, I'm helping behind her back."
"Moony, don't you think Hermione's got reasons why she won't let you help?" James questioned.
"Probably, but she won't tell me, and I can't figure them out," Remus frowned, "Look, James, this is hurting my girlfriend. I'm not about to stand aside and let it continue. Think – if it was Lily, what would you do?"
James froze before giving him a glare, "That was a low blow, Lupin."
Remus only grinned and handed him some of her notes, making him sigh and sit down at the table.
"So she's gotten a diadem, the locket, and the Gaunt ring," James hummed.
"What she's got left is some cup, a diary, and a snake, apparently," Remus muttered.
"Whoa, whoa, hello!" Sirius grinned, reading the note about the cup, "This says it's in my cousin's vault!"
"Yeah, and what?" James asked with a frown.
"She's still a Black, that's what!" he grinned, "So it's still in the Black family vault! And guess who just so happens to be named Sirius Black!"
"But can you still get in?" Remus blinked.
"Oh, definitely, I just never wanted anything more to do with them," Sirius said as he stood, reading over the note before rolling it up and stuffing it in his pocket, "Your little girly better appreciate what I'm doing, Lupin."
Remus snorted and rolled his eyes, standing with him and James.
"Hold up," James prompted, the note in his hand, making Sirius freeze from stretching for the cup. "It says here something about duplicating."
"Oh shit," Remus sighed, still holding onto the corner of the Invisibility Cloak, "Sirius, you better hope that's the cup Hermione means."
"Did she have a detailed drawing there?" he asked, still in that position, his hands nearly wrapped around a cup.
"No," James sighed, rubbing his eye, "We're so screwed, aren't we?"
"Well, what happens if I touch it?" Sirius asked.
"If it's the Horcrux, then nothing," Remus stated, "If it isn't, then it'll duplicate until we're crushed underneath the weight of a million cups."
"What a way to go," James snorted, "Choose carefully Padfoot."
"Is 'eenie meenie' a good idea?" he mused, making Remus groan and run his hands through his hair.
"Maybe I should've listened," he murmured to himself before shaking his head, sucking in a breath with Sirius and James as Sirius finally wrapped his hands around the cup.
Hermione gaped and promptly dropped the load of books she'd been carrying, her eyes wide before she pursed her lips and crossed her arms, glaring at the three. They had cuts and bruises along their body, either from nearly being crushed by hundreds upon thousands of cups, or from running away from guards. Nonetheless, they were injured and grinning sheepishly at her.
"Uhm," James began, "We need to borrow the fang. Please."
Hermione stayed eerily quiet before giving a very clipped, "Alright." She headed up the stairs, even her footsteps sounding silent.
Remus released a breath, nervously running his hands through his hair once more, biting the inside of his cheek and already trying to figure out his side of the argument. During this time, she came back down, the fang in hand. She wordlessly handed it to James before leaning against the banister casually. Remus arched an eyebrow at her behavior while James stabbed the cup that was in Sirius's hands.
It was whenever a rather miffed redhead came through the living room – where the fireplace was – and up to them that he caught on that she'd sent a Patronus to Lily.
"James Potter, I can't believe you!" she hissed as he opened his mouth, only to shut it again. "You could've gotten killed or sent into Azkaban!"
"Well, yeah, but – " he started.
"No, I don't want to hear about anything that could even possibly justify something that could've taken you away," Lily glared while Hermione looked a little bit smug, rocking back and forth against the banister. "Not right now, at least. My main point for now is – what the hell is that?" She pointed bewilderedly at the cup, which was smoking and producing a rather strange green foam.
"Oh, uhh," Sirius began, wincing between James, Remus and Hermione.
"I don't want to even know," Lily decided before turning back to James, "And now I want to find out what could've possibly made you think to do something so idiotic. But at home. Because I suspect those two are about to get yelled at as well, and I think you might be bleeding."
"Hmph," Sirius smirked when James blew air out of his nose and shrugged at them before leaving with his irritated girlfriend, "I don't have a girlfriend to yell at me."
"Hmm," Hermione finally spoke up, "No, so that's why I called Emmeline."
He gaped at her, his jaw seeming to have unhinged, "Why would you call her?"
"Because I so enjoy letting you know when you're being idiotic," Emmeline said, leaning against the railing at the top of the stairs, smiling happily. "Come on. I want the Order to hear what a Neanderthal you were."
Sirius glared at Hermione before sighing and following her back to the fireplace, tossing the cup to Remus before he left. When it was just them, Remus wouldn't meet her eye, instead watching as he unstuck and re-stick the fang into the gaping hole in the cup.
"I thought you knew why I wouldn't let you three come along," Hermione finally said.
"I lied," he admitted, still not meeting her gaze, "I only knew Frank had told you why and wasn't about to tell me. Something about proving you wrong, I think he said."
"I wouldn't let you come because I care very much about all of you," she said, making him look up now, "Especially you, Remus. If anything should happen to me, fine, I don't care. But I care about you."
"What do you think I've been feeling every single night I see you coming home, bleeding or burned or so incoherent that you can't even tell me your own name?" Remus frowned, "Hermione, some nights I'm afraid that you won't come home at all, not to mention that you will come home, but you won't make it through the night."
"I know," she said softly, "And that's why I'm changing tactics, so to speak. I'm asking Dumbledore and Mad-Eye and a few other Order members to help more now." She smirked and eyed his injuries, "But, now that you three are so adamant about fighting all sorts of traps and things, I suppose all four of us could – "
"No," he said quickly, making her smile, "No, no, that's fine. Honest, we can just stay home and that'll be perfectly alright with me." When she began to chuckle, he grinned a bit and sat on the third step from the bottom, setting the cup and fang down and stretching his back out. "D'you think you can patch me up? I can't reach half of these."
"Alright," she said, getting out her wand and moving to his face before catching sight of the grin a second too late, as he tugged her into his lap and held her tightly. "Oh, Remus!" He chuckled, moving his lips to her pulse point, gripping her to him. She gave a huff and a pout, "Stop that, I'm still a bit mad at you."
"What do you think I'm doing?" he murmured against her skin.
"You're trying to distract me, that's what you're doing," she muttered as he grinned, "And I won't have it. Nope. It won't wor – ooh." She gasped and gripped his shoulder, hissing through her teeth. "But biting might – no it won't!" She caught herself as he chuckled and grinned wider, pulling back to look up at her a bit.
"I am sorry though, Hermione," he said.
She sighed and pecked the side of his nose, "I know. I love you."
He smiled, "Love you too."
"Now," she smiled back, "D'you want me to fix these?"
"Yeah, thank you," he said, hugging her a little tighter around the waist as she set to the task.
And now they won't really be going Horcrux hunting anymore.
…I won't say that you'll hate an approaching chapter. No I won't.
But you might mildly dislike what it may contain.