A/N: Just a heads up, I'll be doing a little spring cleaning on this story over the upcoming weeks. Just some editing of the earlier chapters for grammar/sentence structure since they were written so long ago and I feel like they don't properly reflect my writing anymore. Have no fear, I won't be changing any plot or dialogue, but I will be changing things stylistically and probably adding more descriptive language. Some of the early chapters seem a little bland/flat and lack flow so I want to add a little life to them. You won't have to go back to reread anything though because everything important is staying exactly the same! Plot and dialogue are staying the exact same! Just thought you ought to know in case you decided to go back to the beginning for some reason and notice little changes here and there!

Chapter 29 - Ripples

Hermione and Lily sat on one of the benches on the grassy slope just outside the Entrance Hall as they waited to go for their Apparition test. It was a gorgeous spring day; the sky was a light blue with the sporadic white fluffy clouds slowly moving with the gentle breeze. It was one of the first warmer days of the term and the courtyard was full of many sixth years anxiously waiting to try for their Apparition license.

Their test had originally been planned to be taken in Hogsmeade, like their extra Apparition lessons had been, but there had been some sort of scheduling error. Just before lunch, Hermione had seen two of the Ministry instructors arguing with Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall in the Entrance Hall about where they were meant to administer the test since many of the shops in Hogsmeade were apparently unaware they were supposed to be there.

It had then been settled that they were to use the Great Hall like they had in their first few lessons. The instructors did not seem too pleased with this, but they had no other choice. This meant lunch had been cut short that day to prepare the hall for the tests as well as to remove the anti-Apparition charm temporarily. This left even more time for all of the sixth years to sit and wait around for the instructors to be ready for them. Well, those who were seventeen.

Not far away from where Lily and Hermione sat, Mary and Marcus were sitting together under a tree. They held hands as they talked quietly to each other, and Hermione couldn't help but feel slightly envious of their happiness as they looked like a romantic postcard. She had to pull her gaze away and tried to focus on the leaflet in her hands instead.

The leaflet was useless, and so was Hermione's attempts to concentrate on it. It had been a few days since she spoke with Dumbledore and she was still angry with him. One of the few things Hermione always prided herself on was her ability to do well in class and on tests. Failing a test on purpose went against everything she stood for. If he had known that she wouldn't be allowed to pass, Dumbledore shouldn't have let her sign up for the lessons at all.

"This isn't the most helpful thing," said Lily, flipping over the Ministry of Magic leaflet Common Apparition Mistakes and How to Avoid Them that had been handed out to them during their shortened lunch. She wore a small frown on her face and her eyebrows were furrowed tightly as she gripped the leaflet. "I don't see why they think giving this to us right before the test will make any difference."

"I don't think it will," said Hermione somberly, as her eyes scanned over the section on the three D's of Apparition. "If anyone didn't know any of this before today it certainly won't help them now."

Lily nodded in agreement. "Exactly. They should have given it to us during the first lesson. But I guess it's better to have something to look over than just overthink before the test."

A commotion came from the entrance to the castle as the doors flew open and Sirius ran out, quickly followed by an angry Doris and a wide-eyed Claudia.

"Thanks for nothing!" Doris called across the lawn stopping just outside the door. Then she took the bewildered looking Claudia by the arm with a loud huff and led her back into the castle.

Sirius's hand was covering the top of his face right above his eyes and Hermione and Lily exchanged a confused look.

"Sirius?" called out Hermione.

Sirius's head snapped in her and Lily's direction and immediately started making his way down the grassy slope to where the two of them were sitting.

"She hit me in the face with some spell!" roared Sirius, causing the scattered groups around them to watch him curiously. "Just now in the Entrance Hall!"

"What?" said Lily, putting her leaflet down on the bench beside her and staring at Sirius with wide eyes. "Doris did?"

"Yes! She did!" exclaimed Sirius.

"What did she hit you with?" asked Hermione, standing up from the bench and reaching up towards the hand on his face.

Sirius jerked away.

"I don't even know! I didn't feel anything and there wasn't a light… and she did it non-verbally!"

"Then how do you know she even did anything?" asked Lily, also getting to her feet and trying to peer around his hand.

"Because everyone in the Entrance Hall was laughing and looking at my forehead!"

"Let me see it then," said Hermione, grabbing his wrist and trying to pull his hand from his face. Sirius let out a whimper and Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't be a baby, Sirius."

Reluctantly, Sirius let Hermione pull his hand away from his face. As soon as Hermione and Lily got a look at his forehead, they both burst out laughing.

"What is it?" asked Sirius anxiously, looking between the two of them.

"Hold on," laughed Lily who crouched down to her bag that was laying in the grass and pulled out a small mirror. She turned it so Sirius could see himself and snickered. "She dyed your eyebrows green!"

Sirius's eyebrows were a garish shade of green, which contrasted quite terribly with his pale complexion and dark hair. At the sight of his reflection, Sirius's jaw dropped and he snatched the mirror from Lily's hands to get a closer look.

Hermione and Lily continued to laugh as Sirius desperately rubbed at his eyebrows, as if he were thinking he'd be able to wipe the green away.

"What did you do, anyway?" asked Lily, her green eyes twinkling with laughter.

"What?" asked Sirius, looking up from the mirror at Lily. "Oh, I broke up with Doris. She was not happy."

The smile fell from Lily's face.

"Oh dear…" muttered Lily, who was no longer laughing.

"I thought you said that the two of you weren't dating and it was just casual," said Hermione, saying the last word mockingly. "How do you break up with someone you aren't dating?"

"That's the thing, isn't it?" said Sirius, who was back to staring at himself in the mirror and rubbing his eyebrows again. "I didn't think we were! But then over holiday she kept writing me… and we came back and she kept wanting to hang out all the time and then she just asked me to be her boyfriend."

He sounded horrified by his own words and he quickly exaggerated a shudder.

"And that would have been such a bad thing?" asked Lily.

"It is when we had agreed it was casual!"

"So, you told her you wouldn't be her boyfriend, so she jinxed you?" guessed Hermione.

"Yes! I told her that we had talked about just having fun and how she had said that's what she was looking for too! But now she seemed to have different ideas."

"That's on her then," said Lily with a shrug.

Sirius looked up again from the mirror and regarded Lily with surprise.

"Aren't you friends with her? And you're agreeing with me?"

"Well, if you had made your intentions clear, you aren't really in the wrong, are you? And while I do feel badly for her, it's not really anyone's fault and she shouldn't have done that to you."

Sirius blinked at her.

The door to the castle opened again but this time it was James and Remus who came out if it. Hermione's stomach tightened at the sight of Remus, and his face lit up when he spotted her. It was impossible to not smile back at him. James, however, had his gaze locked on Sirius.

"There you are Padfoot! Admiring yourself?" said James he approached them with Remus by his side.

"Of course," said Sirius bitterly, rolling his eyes. "When you look as good as me you can never get enough…"

"He's not bothering you, is he Lily?" asked James.

"I'm not the one he's bothered," giggled Lily, covering her mouth with her hand.

When James got close enough to get a good look at Sirius's face he stopped and burst out laughing.

"I have to say, that's not a good look on you, mate," laughed James.

"Oh, sod off," muttered Sirius, still rubbing at his face.

"Where's Peter?" asked Lily, looking at James and Remus with her eyes still twinkling.

"He had to go to class," said Remus.

"Poor guy isn't seventeen yet and can't take the test," said James.

"Ah, that's a shame," said Lily with a sympathetic look.

"We came to find all of you, they're starting to line people up for the test," said Remus.

Sirius gave a start.

"But what about my eyebrows!"

"Here, let me fix it," said Lily, taking out her wand and pointing it to Sirius's forehead. "Colovaria!"

She tapped her wand to his eyebrows and they slowly returned to their regular, dark selves. Sirius looked back in the mirror and let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks," he said with a grin to Lily.

"You're welcome," said Lily with a proud smile. "And you should have remembered that spell. We learned it ages ago. But I guess now you'll remember it for the next time that happens."

Lily grinned brilliantly and began walking up the slope back towards the castle.

"Well, I had panicked!" called Sirius after her. Then his eyes grew wider and he scrambled to follow Lily. "Wait! What do you mean 'next time'? Lily!"

James laughed and began following his best friend up the hill, leaving Hermione alone with Remus.

"So, are you ready for the test?" Remus asked Hermione as they began making their way up the hill as well.

"I guess I'll have to be," she said, looking down at the grass as they walked.

"With all the revising you've been doing I'm sure you'll be glad to have one thing off your plate."

"Yes, one less thing to have to think about," she said matter-of-factly, even thought the opposite was true. She was going to be thinking about this and Dumbledore for a long time to come.

"You seem a bit tense," Remus said, and Hermione could see the frown on his face out of the corner of her eyes. "How are you feeling?"

"Unsure."

He looked at her curiously. "Unsure of how you're feeling? Or that you're feeling unsure?"

It was a good question, one where she wasn't entirely certain of the answer now that he asked it. She took a moment to consider it.

"Both, I suppose. More so the latter."

"Well," said Remus with a warm smile. "If any of us will pass, it'll be you. You're brilliant."

Hermione smiled weakly back up at him, her chest tightening slightly. She wished he didn't have so much faith in her, he would only ever get let down.

"What was all that about?" asked Mary, appearing beside Hermione. Marcus was at her side, holding her hand.

"Trust me, you don't want to know," said Hermione shaking her head, but immediately feeling herself relax at the distraction of Mary's presence. "But I'll tell you later."

"Excellent," said Mary with a grin. She winked at Hermione and her and Marcus followed the rest of their classmates up the hill.

"What was that all about?" asked Remus with a smirk.

"All I can say is just don't get on the wrong side of Doris," said Hermione, smiling to herself while thinking about Sirius's green eyebrows. Mary would have loved to have seen that. That is, before she went off to murder Sirius for upsetting Doris.

"Noted," grinned Remus.

They made her way to the Entrance Hall where she saw the rest of her of age classmates beginning to line up. An older man in Ministry robes stood at door to the Great Hall with a clipboard in his hand.

"Alphabetical order, please! By surname!" piped the old wizard named Twycross who had led their Apparition lessons. "We'll bring you in in small groups and the rest will wait outside until you are called in! While you're inside, please do your best to remain silent while the people before you are being tested! Thank you!"

There was awkward chatter and everyone tried to form a single file line in alphabetical order. Hermione waved goodbye to Remus as she and Lily made their way closer to the front. Near the front of the line she spotted Doris standing behind Sirius and Hermione had to suppress a laugh at the look of annoyance on both of their faces.

Hermione ended up behind Sarah Connelly from Hufflepuff. Nervously, she pulled the leaflet back out to scan over it as the first group of students were shuffled into the Great Hall.

"Hermione Dawson, right?" said a voice behind her and she turned to see Marcus Donner.

"Oh, um, yes," she answered awkwardly, folding up her leaflet.

"Marcus Donner," he introduced himself with a grin, holding out his hand. "I don't think we've ever officially met."

"No, I suppose we haven't," she said, shaking his hand.

"Mary speaks very highly of you," said Marcus with a small nod.

That touched her, and Hermione smiled graciously at him. "That's very kind of you to say. You should hear the lovely things she says about you."

A hint of a blush spread across his cheeks and he immediately looked bashful. "Does she really? That's good to hear…" the corner of his lips twitched upwards.

He turned around to look near the middle of the line where Mary stood. When Mary noticed him, she beamed at the sight of both Hermione and Marcus, waving slightly.

Directly behind her stood Claudia, who was leaning around to the front of Mary to speak to Remus. The smile fell from Hermione's face and she quickly turned around and unfolded her leaflet, looking back down at it to make herself look busy.

"Nervous?" asked Marcus with a friendly tone. "I know I am."

"You could say that," mumbled Hermione.

A sound came from inside the Great Hall and Hermione and Marcus both looked over in its direction.

"WOO!" yelled out a voice as soon as the doors swung open. "GUESS WHO CAN APPARATE?"

Sirius strut out in front of the first group that had entered to take their tests as they walked back into the Entrance Hall. Both Doris and Avery were staring daggers at him as he waved his results above his head.

"It's official!" he sang across the hall. He practically skipped down the line of waiting students trying to high-five everyone. The only people who entertained him was an embarrassed looking Remus and a thrilled looking James.

When he had disappeared into the Grand Staircase with one final booming "WOO!" there was an awkward silence until Mary broke it.

"What an idiot," she called out, making the rest of the line laugh.

Only one more group went in before Hermione's group was called into the Great Hall. There was about five of them in her group, but it made her feel better that Lily ended up in there with her. Just the sight of her seemed to calm Hermione's nerves a bit.

The inside of the hall looked a lot like how it had appeared during lessons. All of the tables had been removed and were replaces with mats and floor markers. But unlike during the lessons, there was only one hoop laying on the floor rather than one for each of the students.

There was another instructor standing with a clipboard by a floor marker on the complete opposite side of the hall. Twycross began lining them up along the wall near the door, close to where the singular hoop lay. It was clear that they had tried their best to make as much use out of the space given to them, but Hermione swore she heard Twycross mumbling complaints to himself about having the test inside a constricted room as he made his way back to the front of the line.

"You will all wait in this line until your name is called," said Twycross loudly this time so the group could hear him. "After you are tested, you will receive your results and then wait over there—" he pointed towards a row of benches on the other side of the door. "–Until everyone in your group has finished. Then you will all be dismissed together."

There were murmurs of acknowledgment from their small group and Twycross gave them all a nod. Hermione watched as Sarah Connelly was called up by the other instructor to take her test. Anxiety was now fully flowing through Hermione's body as she watched Sarah apparate into the hoop and then walk over to the benches with her parchment results.

"Dawson, Hermione!" called out the Ministry witch who was standing on the other side of the hall.

Hermione took a deep breath and walked across the Great Hall to the witch. The walk was farther than she had expected, and every step seemed to echo around the nearly empty room. Hermione was suddenly very aware that every pair of eyes were directly focused on her.

"Okay, just stand here on this 'X'. Yes, just like that, dear," said the witch, positioning Hermione on a large, taped X on the floor. The instructor pulled her by the shoulders until she faced the hoop that was placed on the other side of the hall. By the hoop, stood Twycross, also with a clipboard, who was staring at her expectantly.

From across the room, Hermione saw Lily giving her two encouraging thumbs up. Having Lily there had initially given her comfort, but now just made Hermione feel worse. Knowing she had to fail the test but still make it look believable left a bad taste in her mouth. All of her friends had seen her in the practice lessons do it perfectly. She was going to have to make it as close as possible.

"Whenever you're ready," said the instructor with a nod.

With one final deep breath, Hermione tried to focus on the hoop; not the inside of it, but slightly to the side. In her mind she vividly pictured the edges, seeing her foot just slightly cross over the boundary. If she was too far out of the hoop it would look like she threw the test on purpose. She wondered if Lily would believe it if she did.

So, she had to make it look accidental. She had to make it look real. She had to make sure she didn't accidentally make it into the hoop and actually pass…

Here goes nothing… she thought to herself. Remember the three D's… Destination, Determination, Deliberation… Destination, Determination, Deliberation…

Focusing with all her might, there was a crack and Hermione felt the room around her spin. Everything went dark and she felt the familiar sensation of being pulled as if squeezing down a tube. The feeling didn't last long, and suddenly she felt her feet touch back down on solid ground.

Her heart was beating in her ears as she slowly opened her eyes and looked down. Her shoe was over the line by not even a centimetre.

A heavy breath escaped her body and she looked up at Twycross who stood by with a clipboard, quickly scribbling away on it as he peered down at her feet. With a sad smile, he handed her the sheet of parchment for her results.

"FAILED" was written in big letters at the bottom of the page.

She should have felt relieved. Everything had gone exactly to plan, but instead there was only resentment. It was entirely unfair. By failing on purpose by such a slim margin, Hermione had proven to herself she could apparate perfectly, and yet it didn't matter.

The thought of it brought her anger bubbling back to the surface. No matter how many of Dumbledore's rules she followed, it would never be enough, and he'd never allow her to live a somewhat normal life as he continued to unsuccessfully find a way for her to go home.

It was like all of her emotions were beginning to suffocate her. Anger, embarrassment, fear, exhaustion, and misery all fought to take a hold of her body. She felt entirely hollow as she tried to suck in a breath, but there was no air to breathe.

Hermione turned on her heel and rushed towards the door of the Great Hall, ignoring the benches where Sarah Connelly was seated.

"Hermione, wait!" called out Lily, but what she supposed to do? Her turn was coming up soon and it wasn't as though she could leave the line.

Technically, they were supposed to be let out in the groups they entered in, so when Hermione stepped into the Entrance Hall, all eyes fell on her. There were scattered looks of confusion at the sight of her by herself, but the first thing Hermione noticed was Claudia still talking with Remus. Like everyone else, his head turned to look at her and his eyes went wide with shock. She briefly saw confused looks from Mary, Michelle, and James, spread out down the line, but her eyes traveled back to Remus and Claudia in the middle.

"Hermione?" Remus questioned. Concern flooded his face but Hermione quickly looked away from them and continued towards the front door of the castle.

Hermione welcomed the warm breeze and fresh air as she stepped back outside. Inhaling deeply, she let her shoulders slump as she closed her eyes and tilted her face towards the sky. The sunlight soaked into her face as she forced herself to focus on her breathing, desperately trying to keep herself from either crying or screaming.

The only thing cutting down her anger was the beautiful weather. Because Hermione was angry. She was still angry from that last meeting with Dumbledore. Angry that Dumbledore continued to patronize her. Angry he forced her to humiliate herself by failing on purpose. Angry that he wouldn't let her leave but not let her have a full life. Angry that he continued to not allow her to change things…

"Only time will tell" Dumbledore had said.

What a load of rubbish.

She wondered what would have happened if she had, in fact, passed the test? What would have happened then? Would Dumbledore have intervened and gotten the results thrown out? Would it have forced him to somehow get the Ministry to acknowledge her existence? Or maybe it would have just landed her in a whole lot of trouble, but with Dumbledore as well as the Ministry…

A light breeze rustled through her hair, bringing the scent of spring with it and Hermione sighed and opened her eyes to stare at the green grounds around her. She wasn't entirely sure what to do now, so she began walking back to the bench she had been sitting on earlier with Lily. She had only made it halfway across the grass when a hand grabbed her by the shoulder and spun her around.

"What- Remus?" gasped Hermione at the sight of him. "What are you doing here?"

Remus stood panting slightly, staring at her with bewilderment.

"I had to come and check on you," he said quickly, looking over his shoulder towards the castle then back at her. "Hermione, what happened?"

Without a word, Hermione shoved the parchment in his direction. He looked at her questioningly as he took it in his hands. As his eyes quickly scanned the parchment, his frown grew bigger.

"Ah, Hermione…" he groaned, looking back up at her sadly.

"It doesn't matter," she said, taking back the parchment. "But you need to go back, your test is coming up soon…"

He waved his hand dismissively towards the castle behind him.

"That's not what matters right now," he said firmly, but his eyes were soft as he stared into her own.

It was such a kind thing to say, suggesting that she was the thing that mattered most in that moment. It felt like a piece of her broke in that moment, and against her better judgement, Hermione stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his middle. In an instant, his arms pulled her tightly into him and immediately Hermione felt herself relax into his chest. Everything about him seemed to comfort her in ways she didn't quite understand. Oh how she had missed the feeling of his embrace these last few weeks. She had missed the comfort from her best friend.

He leaned his head on top of her own, and Hermione silently just breathed him in. The familiar faint scent of chocolate as well as parchment was on his robes, and between that and the smell of the spring air and grassy grounds everything felt perfect.

"I just wish I could have been able to pass it," she confessed into his robes with a small sigh.

"I know, I know," he said, rubbing his hand in small circles on her back.

"It's just so embarrassing."

"It's only the first test," he said soothingly into her hair "You'll have more chances to take it again in the future."

She had started nodding at his logic until what he had actually said sunk in and she was struck with dread. Hermione jerked out of his embrace so suddenly it was like she had been electrocuted. There was no way for Remus to have known what he had just implied, but it was an abrupt reminder of all the reasons why she had wanted to distance herself in the first place.

Remus looked down at her with a mix of shock and confusion as the door to the castle opened. James's head peaked out, scanning the grounds until his eyes spotted Remus.

"Remus, the group before yours just went in!" he called out.

Panic spread across Remus's face and he looked back at Hermione. "Right.. er- stay here, okay?"

"What?" she said blankly, still feeling dazed from her emotional whiplash.

"Just wait here for me, alright? Please? I'll come right back after the test. Please, just wait for me."

His green eyes had a sense of pleading in them and Hermione's heart immediately melted, dispelling all of the horror she had just felt. How could she possibly say no to him?

"Sure," was all she could get out.

He reached out and took hold of her upper arm for just a moment to give in a quick squeeze before he turned and sprinted up the slope towards the castle.

Hermione sadly made her way back to the bench she had been sitting on earlier. A warm breeze tickled through her hair and she took a deep breath and leaned backwards, holding the stone bench for support as she closed her eyes, letting the feeling of the wind take over.

She couldn't believe Remus had come after her. Well, actually, she could believe it. Wasn't that just the type of person he was? One of the reasons she liked him so much? Why did everything have to be so complicated?

But, crush or not, he was still her best friend and she missed him. She'd be able to handle pushing those feelings aside because having him as a friend was better than not at all. Afterall, she had never let Ron know she had liked him. Why should anything have to change? Why should she try to avoid him? She'd be able to ignore it for the sake of being able to keep Remus close. Not to mention, she was so close to finally finishing becoming an animagus to be able to join him on full moons… She had come too far to give up.

She just needed to convince herself that these past few weeks of odd behavior and avoidances were just more ripples in that stream Dumbledore seemed so fond of. An audible groan escaped her as she thought about it. Her anger from before had finally begun to lessen, and the last thing she needed to think about right then was Dumbledore.

As time went by, more and more of her classmates came back outside as their tests finished. There were looks of excitement all around on their faces as they waved around their passing results while enjoying the beautiful afternoon off from class.

Some would steal glances at her as she sat on the bench and whisper as they stared in her direction. It must have been hot gossip that Hermione Dawson, one of the top students in their class, had failed her test. The feeling of shame and embarrassment returned and she suddenly wished she hadn't agreed to wait for Remus outside and instead wished she could escape somewhere in the castle.

Perhaps she should have told him she'd be waiting for him in their room. They hadn't been there since before Easter holiday over a month ago now. But then she would have had to walk back inside and past all her classmates still waiting to be test. This was probably for the best.

It took about half an hour until the doors to the castle opened and Remus came walking out. A look of relief washed over his face when he spotted her.

"I wasn't sure you'd still be here," said Remus as he walked up to the bench she was sitting on.

"I told you I would be," blinked Hermione.

"Yeah, but I was worried…"

He looked at her with a sad smile that tugged at her heart.

"So, did you pass?" asked Hermione.

"Uh… yeah I did," Remus said with a shrug, looking embarrassed.

"Oh, congratulations, Remus!"

"It's really not that big of a deal…"

"Yes it is! Just because I didn't pass doesn't mean you shouldn't be allowed to celebrate that you did. That's a wonderful accomplishment!"

"It just doesn't feel right," muttered Remus. "And after I said you'd be the sure one to pass…"

Hermione shook her head. "It's over and done. You should be proud of yourself."

"Thank you," he said genuinely, and Hermione smiled back.

He looked around the grounds and noticed some of their classmates staring at the two of them, some still whispering. Hermione felt herself flush.

"Uh, let's take a walk," he said, cocking his head farther down the sloped path.

Wanting nothing more than to be away from prying eyes, Hermione eagerly nodded and stood up from the bench. She followed Remus as they passed the few groups of students out on the grass but Hermione kept her vision focused directly in front of her.

They continued to walk down until they reached the lake and Hermione had to admire the view. The sun was reflecting off of the soft ripples that spread across the calm water. She was glad that they had had their Apparition Test that afternoon; most of the rest of the castle was still in class. It was so quiet and peaceful out by the lake without another person in sight.

Hermione was then abruptly aware that this was the first time she had truly been alone with Remus since Flourish and Blotts. It wasn't as difficult as she thought it would be. If anything, walking side by side along the edge of the lake felt normal and comfortable with his presence. Maybe nothing did have to change.

"I just don't understand," said Remus, shaking his head. "You always did so well in practice and Twycross knows that. Making you fail for not even a full toe over the line is just unfair."

He hadn't been in the room when she had failed so Hermione looked up at him questionably and Remus smiled apologetically.

"Sorry, Lily told me what happened."

Of course she had. He seemed to notice her discomfort and he groaned slightly. "I'm sorry, Hermione. I didn't mean to upset you."

"You aren't what upset me," Hermione assured him, smiling wearily. "Not by a long shot."

No, that had been Dumbledore.

They continued to walk until they reached a shaded area beneath a large tree that was hanging over the water and Remus led them both towards it. The tree looked ancient, with a thick trunk and exposed roots protruding from the mix of dirt and grass below it. It was big enough that if they sat against it they'd be hidden from the main path, and Hermione wondered if Remus had picked it specifically for that reason.

"After you," said Remus with a grin, gesturing towards the base of the tree.

He held out his hand and Hermione smiled as she took it, the warmth of his hand feeling nice in her own. Gently, he helped her sit at the base of the tree and Hermione pulled her knees into her body, resting her feet on the roots in front of her.

With his crooked smile, Remus walked closer to the edge of the water and picked up a stone. He flipped it over a few times in his hand before lazily tossing it into the lake. The rock hit the water with a soft 'plop!' and disappeared under the surface. Ripples quickly spread out in growing circles across the water, and Hermione stared, mesmerized. It was all very ironic how the world around her seemed to constantly mock her.

"I hope it didn't hit the Giant Squid," said Remus suddenly, sounding slightly nervous at the idea of upsetting the giant cephalopod.

"Hm?" she said absentmindedly as she watched the waves from the stone slowly blend back in with the ordinary lake ripples.

"I said, I hope I didn't hit the squid with the rock."

"Oh. I think you'd know by now if you did," said Hermione with a smirk.

"I think you're right," chucked Remus, and Hermione couldn't help but laugh with him.

Remus walked back up towards the tree and sat down beside Hermione and stretched his long legs out in front of him. He leaned back against the tree trunk, their shoulders touching slightly as he too looked out over the lake.

"So, if Lily told you what happened, where is she now?" Hermione asked.

"I think she wanted to give you space, but she definitely seemed upset on your behalf," said Remus. "She was still in the Entrance Hall when I finished my test. She told me she was going to wait for Mary and Claudia's group to finish to see how they do."

Hermione had to keep herself from scrunching up her face at the mention of Claudia. But then maybe it was a good thing he had brought her up.

"You and Claudia seem to be getting a lot closer lately," said Hermione carefully. "She's very nice."

"Yeah, I supposed she is nice," said Remus vaguely as they both continued to look out over the lake in front of them. "I don't really know her very well."

"Have you ever thought about asking her out?" she asked casually.

Remus's body jerked with shock and he turned to stare at her blankly.

"What?"

"Claudia Mahoney," repeated Hermione, hoping she sounded nonchalant. "You both seemed rather friendly before the test."

"I don't like her like that," he answered stiffly.

Hermione had to fight the smile that threatened to form on her face at that information, but she had to remind herself that it would be better if he were interested in someone else. Having him be with anyone else would be the perfect reminder to her that she wasn't supposed to be there or supposed to be with him. If Hermione couldn't be with him, then he should at least know about a girl that could. That's what a good friend would do, right?

"How do you expect to get to know if you like someone if you don't ask them on a date?" she asked.

Remus said nothing for a moment, and Hermione wondered if it meant he silently agreed, but instead he spoke with a soft tone. "There are other ways to know you like someone without ever dating them."

His words made her heart beat faster, but it only filled her with sadness. She looked back out at the water and saw him do the same out of the corner of her eye. He certainly wasn't wrong about that…

"Well," she said, letting out a small cough to clear her throat. "I think you should ask her out."

His head slowly turned to look at her, and his expression was unreadable. "You do?"

Hermione nodded and continued to look forward, not daring to look him in his eyes. She probably would have lost her nerve if she had. "It's always worth a shot."

"I've never thought of her like that."

It was hard to believe any guys in their year hadn't considered Claudia Mahoney like that, but she didn't think Remus would lie to her about it. Maybe for some odd reason he hadn't really noticed her. She had surely noticed him.

"She's had a bit of a crush on you for a while now," Hermione admitted.

"For a while now? What makes you say that?"

"She told me," shrugged Hermione.

"She told you? When?" he gasped.

"Well, not directly," admitted Hermione, not feeling particularly thrilled by his new sense of interest. "But on our first Hogsmeade trip she mentioned how she thought you were very good looking. And she obviously wanted to spend time with you back in January that day you made snowmen… And then she was upset after Valentine's Day because she had hoped you might ask her."

Remus looked dumbfounded by this information, and he swallowed deeply before sighing.

"I hope I didn't make you uncomfortable… or overstep in anyway… I just thought you deserved to know," Hermione said after he didn't say anything for a while.

"I'm just thinking," he sighed. "What you said does make sense."

"It does?"

"It explains how she was acting in Flourish and Blotts on our last day of holiday."

Hermione's stomach dropped at the mention of that moment. Remus must have mistaken her silence for confusion because he turned to look back at her with a weary smile.

"Not long after you left the shop she came in and was friendlier than I expected," he said, and Hermione swore his face had turned a little pink. "I wasn't sure if she was just being nice or if she was flirting…"

Ah, so he finally brought it up. Hermione had been wondering why it had never come up over the last two weeks. Not on the train, not at meals or after classes. It made her wonder if he had been purposely keeping it a secret. Now she wondered if he really had just seen it as so inconsequential it wasn't worth a mention. It was quite endearing how he was so oblivious to other's affections, although in her case it was ideal.

"I'd wager a guess it was the latter," said Hermione.

"That's what James, Sirius, and Peter thought too after I told them."

This confused her. So he had brought it up, just not with her. Interesting.

"And what did they say?" asked Hermione, genuinely curious to hear the answer.

"They thought I was blind," said Remus, shaking his head.

Hermione laughed softly to herself. "Well, you kind of are."

The corner of his lip twitched and he leaned his head back against the tree trunk. "Perhaps all of you are right."

"I'm always right."

It was Remus's turn to laugh. "Again, you aren't wrong."

"You know, if you ever needed advice with girls, I could always try to help. If you haven't noticed, I happen to be one," said Hermione, hoping her tone came across as teasing rather than pained.

"I know you're a girl, Hermione," said Remus, rolling his eyes.

"And as a girl, I think Claudia would be thrilled if you asked her out," said Hermione, feeling her mouth grow drier with each word.

"I don't know…"

"Something to consider then," Hermione said.

"I guess I can… consider it…" Remus said slowly. He gazed out at the lake, a distant look on his face. "If you really think I should."

"I do," Hermione lied.

Remus slowly nodded to himself.

"I'm surprised you didn't say anything about seeing her to me before now," Hermione said truthfully.

"We haven't had much of a chance to speak the last few weeks, have we?" he smiled weakly.

"I'm sorry about that," mumbled Hermione.

And she was. She wished more than anything that she could talk to him about everything going on. If anyone would understand it would be him; her only real form of comfort since she had arrived in the past. How unfortunate that the person she felt most comfortable with, who always reassured her and listened to her, was the main person, aside from Dumbledore, that she could not speak to about her newest internal dilemma of the heart. It just felt like another lie, and she hated lying to him.

Hermione sighed and leaned over and placed her head on his shoulder. She probably shouldn't have done it, but leaning on him always just felt so right, and he never seemed to mind before. But, if he did ask out Claudia, that would probably be the last time she'd be able to do it. The thought of it twisted at her stomach. How odd to be jealous of a girlfriend he didn't even have.

They sat there in silence, watching the water before Remus shifted slightly and spoke.

"Hermione, can I ask you something?" asked Remus, looking down at her on his shoulder.

"Anything," she said.

"Did something happen when you were at James's house?" asked Remus.

Hermione arched her head up on his shoulder to get a better look at his face. His brows were furrowed and that look of concern he had been wearing for the last two weeks had reappeared.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"You all may think I'm blind, but I do notice some things," he said. "You've been acting strange ever since the train ride back."

"Nothing bad happened at James's. It was actually a really lovely time."

"And it has nothing to do with Sirius?"

"I promise you, Remus, nothing bad happened at the Potters', and no, I'm not still angry with Sirius," she insisted.

"I've just been really worried about you," said Remus. He gently placed his hand on her knee and gave it a squeeze, which Hermione also felt squeeze her heart.

"There's no need to worry…" muttered Hermione.

"I feel like there is," said Remus, looking at her seriously. "I know studying isn't out of the ordinary for you, but something just… feels different. I can't quite put my finger on it."

"Everything has just been really stressful lately," she half confessed, and Remus nodded understandingly.

"I've really missed you," Remus said in such a soft tone that Hermione's stomach fluttered.

"I'm right here," she said, raising her head off of his shoulder and looking at him.

"Maybe physically, but lately you've been somewhere else. You've been so quiet and distant, not to mention eating less and looking as though you're barely sleeping."

It would have touched her that he had noticed, but she only felt more miserable.

"I always get like this when exams near," Hermione said smoothly, hugging herself a bit tighter into her knees and focusing hard on the water in front of them.

"If you say so," he said lightly. "But if there's something bothering you, you do know you can always tell me, right?"

Hermione looked back at him and took in the sincerity in his expression. The faintest of crooked smiles was on his lips while his green eyes looked at her sadly. The breeze was blowing his sandy hair fringe across his forehead and into his eyes. He really was quite handsome, beautiful really, and she couldn't believe it had taken her so long to fully notice.

"I know, and I will," said Hermione. "Truthfully, I've missed you too."

"I'm right here," he said with a cheeky smirk.

"Ha ha," said Hermione dryly, rolling her eyes but smiling, nonetheless.

Remus's grin widened.

"If your time really was so nice though I'd love to hear more about it. Letters can only say so much," he said.

"Did you want to go to our room tonight?" asked Hermione. "We haven't had a chance to go since break. And if I remember correctly, I promised we'd have a chance to catch up together."

Remus's face fell into a deep frown.

"Tonight? I really wish I could," said Remus, looking genuinely upset with himself. "But Lily and I have Prefect rounds…"

The rejection was bittersweet in a way. While she was handling being around him much easier than she had initially thought, maybe she shouldn't be pushing her luck. She was going to have to stop acting oddly though.

"I'm sure we'll find another opportunity some other time," she said with a sad smile.

"The full moon is in a few days," said Remus bitterly. "It might not be until after that."

"Then it'll have to wait until after that," she said simply.

"Hermione! Remus!"

The voice came from a short distance away and they both jumped

The two of them looked up the hill to see Lily running towards them with James hot on her heels. Lily's eyes were wide and panicked as she ran with one arm waving wildly above her.

"Lily? James?" called out Remus, and Hermione could hear alarm in his voice. A similar sense of panic went through her as Remus pulled himself to his feet.

"There you are!" James said as they reached them at the lake bank. "We've been looking for you two for ages!"

"What's wrong?" asked Hermione, slowly standing up and taking in the horrified expressions on both James and Lily's faces.

"It's Mary," said Lily, her shoulders slumping as she caught her breath. "She splinched herself."

A/N: Did I write this entire chapter forgetting they actually do their tests in Hogsmeade and not at Hogwarts? Yes. Did I suddenly realize this in the middle of the night while editing and nearly start crying? Also yes. Did I want to rewrite the entire thing to make it work at Hogsmeade? Nope. Did I just create an excuse as to why they had the test at Hogwarts instead? I sure did! Do I regret it? …Maybe. BUT I did want them to be in little groups for the test and for them to be near the Hogwarts lake, so it's just going to stay like this. We never do see the test in the books (poor Harry being 16…) so this was still a bit fun to write!

So let me know what you thought! Is there anything in particular that you liked? Anything you want to happen? Anything you think should be different? What do you think will happen next? Any suggestions or concerns? Let me know!

REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW