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The smell of water and the cold brought them slowly from their sleep. There in the quiet forest, they woke naked and entwined. Lupin, who had been aware of warmth pressed against his chest, opened his eyes with a start when the source shivered slightly and tried to burrow further into him.
"Hermione? Hermione wake up." Her only response was a muffled groan as she wrapped herself tighter around him. Gently, he shook her until her eyes opened. With a shy smile he looked down at her. "Good morning" After a moment, the shock passed over her face and she reeled away from him.
"Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh My GOD!" Without meaning to, her eyes moved over Remus's entire body and she quickly turned a shade of deep red. He laughed despite himself as he reached a hand to calm her. When he touched her bare skin she jumped slightly and he sighed.
"Hemione. It's only me. It's Remus. Don't be afraid."
"I know! I just..we..you..I.."
"Made love?"
"Well yes..but..and"
"Enjoyed it?"
"Absolutly, it's just.."
"A bit of a surprise to wake up naked in the arms of an older man after a night in the forest with the same man as a werewolf and in Animagus form?"
"Well actually.." she stopped speaking for a moment and Remus saw the red on her face darken another shade. Suddenly she looked up and met his eyes, a small smile on her face. "...it was quite nice to wake up with you like that."
Remus placed his hand on hers once more and leaned foreward. Gently he placed his lips upon her forhead and he felt the tensions drain out of her. "I'm sorry if this isn't what you wanted. It's just that when it happened.."
"No. This is what I wanted. What I want. I always have. I just..I'm not sure why it happened this morning is all. You transformed and so did I and then we..what did we do last night? I mean..aside from this?"
Remus sat quietly for a moment and then a grin crossed his tired face. "Technically we did this in the early morning. As for last night, it's hard to remember. All I remember is running with you." Hermione laughed at his joke and he was glad for it. She was still tense. He could hear her heart beating. Unconsciously his thumb was stroking the back of her hand as his fingers entwined with hers. "As for the other...situation the only thing I can think of is instinct."
"What do you mean?" She looked at him puzzled.
"I mean that you were a wolf and for the most part so was I. It is known that wolves mate for life. They are affectionate and family orriented. You might say once they're in love, thay stay that way. Maybe they brought out something we hadn't acknowledged but they could sense." Remus dropped his head slightly. Even after her confession to him this morning, it had been in the heat of an act that brought passion to the surface. After all his time away from her he had begun to wonder if she had loved him as much as he had her. Now his doubt was screaming in his ears and he was waiting for her rejection.
When her lips touched his he was surprised. Though it was for a brief moment, he felt heat rising inside of him once more and in the back of his mind he wondered about it. Slowly he returned her kiss but just as he moved his hands to her face she pulled away from him.
"I can feel the doubt inside of you Remus. I can feel you ready for me to tell you no. I don't know why I can feel it..but I can feel something else too. Do you know what it is?" He only shook his head, unable to look away from her. "I can feel your love. I meant what I said. I am in love with you. I have been for a long time. Can't you feel it?"
Remus closed his eyes for a minute. He focused on Hermione's hand within his own. Focused on the way it felt to touch her. Without his bidding, memories of before flooded him. He saw her moving beneath him. Then he felt something. He felt the desire inside of her. Felt the passion and the need. He felt her love for him. His eyes flew open to find Hermione a few inches away.
"I can feel you." He whispered almost in awe. She only nodded. A smile on her face.
"Hermione? What's happening to us?"
"I don't know Remus. Maybe it's the bond you spoke of. Maybe it's more. But I'm not afraid of it. I'm not afraid of you." Her fingers under his chin sent a jolt through him. He could feel the want in her and his own built to match it. Slowly he lowered his face to hers and just as his lips grazed her's, he whispered something.
"I love you Hermione."
With that they came together.
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