Moonlight Madness

By shadowlessphantom

Warning: This is about REMUS and HERMIONE, in case you're just a stray dog who happened to 'stray' here. If you don't like what you see, what you read, or just in case you don't like it for no reason, you're free to hit that Back button and depart to other fan fics. It will clearly be my pleasure to see you leave. YOUR OWN FLAMES WILL BURN YOU IN HELL. See you there mate.

A little bit later in updating!!!! Sorry, we just had our exams and Algebra aka. Math in general was horrible! I think I am going to die and get a zero in my periodical test and it mainly means I am going to fail!

Anyhow, that will not stop me from updating this story for the readers of course. I have downgraded the rating—so more people can read it since I've plotted a clean, totally NOT explicit story. For those expecting entertainment on Remus and Hermione's part, sorry for disappointing you. Now on with the story!

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Chapter Seven: And You Know It

"Hey wake up!"

Ginny's shrill voice was hard to ignore. Hermione slowly opened her eyes, trying to shrug off the sleepy feeling. But she ended up closing her eyes again and cuddling a pillow underneath the thick blanket. It was so lovely to sleep in a warm bed while the temperature was cold.

"Come on, we're going to Hogwarts now!" said Ginny, pulling off the blanket. Cold air made Hermione shiver. She opened her eyes and sat up. Going to Hogwarts livened her spirits. She would see Remus again.

"There's hot water so you can take a bath now." she said and went over to the mirror, running a brush on her flaming red hair. Hermione got a towel and a robe, suddenly feeling very awake.

The thought of seeing Remus—the thought of being with him again made Hermione's heart leap high. She had never felt this way before. So on top, like she had conquered the whole world.

Hermione looked at herself in the mirror. Though she didn't notice, the old glimmer and light in her eyes was back. It shimmered against the pale morning light, twinkling in a way it had never before.

She took a long bath and got out, feeling refreshed than she had ever felt before. Ready in heart and soul, she dressed up and brushed her hair, sitting in front of the window far too long.

"Hey Hermione, are you done yet? You're hair's gonna fall of, you've been brushing it since a while ago!" said Ginny, peeking inside the room they shared for the moment. She snapped out of her thinking and smiled.

"Sorry. Yes, I'm done."

She followed Ginny downstairs where a Portkey would transport them outside Hogwarts and in Hogsmeade. She greeted everyone with a smile and a good morning. It had been long since she had been doing that.

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Remus stared back at his reflection on the full-length mirror. When he had woken up, he felt a slight bit of transformation, and he understood why. His complexion had changed; the scars marking the years of being a werewolf were lost and unseen on his face, as if it had never been.

And remarkable of all was how the twinkle in his eyes seemed to liven up his usually dull, expressionless face. He knew it would happen sometime. And so he knew what to expect somehow, as Dumbledore had reminded him.

But what was the same was his tattered and old cloak. And the heaviness he'd been feeling. And what Dumbledore told him about the night before.

There was a soft knock on the door that made him turn. "It's open." He called, sitting down on his desk and pretending to arrange some things—random things.

"Good morning Remus." He looked up to see Minerva smiling at him. "Good morning to you too, Minerva." He replied casually, praying that she wouldn't bring up yesterday's happenings.

"Some good news. Though there are no students, the Weasleys, Harry and Hermione will come to visit!" she said happily. All the light drained from Remus' face. They were—she was—going to be here for Christmas?

"Remus? Did you hear me?" she asked, waving a hand slightly just in front of his face. He looked up, still quite surprised and nodded. "I did Minerva. I'll greet them, I'll just have to—get a few things done." He replied.

Minerva flashed him a long, meaningful look before saying, "See you later." And going out of his room. The person he wanted to forget, whom he didn't want to get hurt would be spending time here.

"I'll just fall in love with her all over again." He told himself, walking by the window and staring at the dark swaying trees of the Forest, even though it was actually rained with snow.

At the back of his mind, or maybe it was his heart; a voice told him something else. 'Did you ever fall out of love with her to fall in love all over again?'

And when he thought of it, the voice was right. It was impossible to fall in love with her all over again, because he did love her still.

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The snow had thickened as the Weasleys, Harry, Hermione and Tonks reached Hogwarts. Hermione had seen this quickly; being the clever one, and her eyes slowly strayed towards the spot where she and Remus had kissed.

She shivered, not because of the cold of the snow but of the thought. It had been always right. Being with Remus, since that day they saw each other again, everything had felt so right.

Her eyes strayed up at the many windows where she didn't see a lone figure peeking over at the grounds. Remus had been standing there, waiting for their arrival. Even at the distance, he could already tell where Hermione was, as it was obvious.

There were eight Weasleys—meaning eight red heads. And then there was Harry who had raven black hair. Tonks was in a pink up do today, so all that was left was Hermione, her dark brown hair in a ponytail.

Though they appeared to be the same in that distance, Hermione stood out and Remus didn't know why. He just had this way of seeing—no—feeling her there. It seemed funny, but it was true.

Remus retreated back from the window and tried to fix himself. He ran a hand on his hair and pushed it back. He looked so different after all these years, and the gray of his hair had now been absent. He sighed and hoped no one would notice, if that were possible at all.

Feeling he was presentable enough, he made his way down towards the Great Hall where they were going to eat breakfast. His progress was slow, and when he had reached the double doors, he stopped and hesitated.

But go in, he did, and laughter filled his ears that somehow made him smile. And he knew why it had made his lips curl—as the laughter belonged to the one he loved most. They were there, in a big round table in the middle of the room.

His heart told him to run over to Hermione and hug her, but his mind led him towards an empty seat beside McGonagall, which is something he would do anyway even if no one else were there and it was only the two of them.

"Remus! Fancy seeing you!" Mrs. Weasley greeted, smiling brightly at him. The other Weasleys, Harry and Hermione all acknowledged him and he had exchanged a few words but couldn't speak of anything more.

He was glad no one noticed how his features had changed—to save him the trouble of speaking and explaining that he wouldn't do productively. In fact, he thought he wouldn't be able to at all; this "something" is still hard to explain, since they still didn't know how it came to be.

Breakfast was filled with cheer, and Remus somehow found himself participating. He didn't know what he was happy about but he was in for the laughter and the stories about what had happened with each one in the table.

He was also glad to see that Hermione, Ron, and Harry were all laughing together with the Weasley twins; he thought their friendship had been broken but it was stronger than maybe anyone could think.

"You look fabulous, Remus, have I said that?" Tonks said, smiling brightly and turning towards him. He paused and glanced at Dumbledore who was busy laughing with Professor Flitwick, but was relieved when Tonks turned away, distracted by Ron.

Of course. Ron and Harry knew what had been happening. It explained how they wanted him to stay away from Hermione and just forget about what has become of them. If only they realized, and somehow, if they exactly felt what he did, forgetting was never an easy task to do.

After, the group got up randomly to do some things they had in mind or something else, and Remus watched them silently, waiting to be left alone maybe, or spending some time with Hermione.

"My dear Professor Flitwick, let us go and see your new lesson plan, I'm particularly interested in—"

"Fred and George! No fooling around, this is a SCHOOL... and take care of your sister!"

"Bill, Charlie! Want to join Harry and me in playing Quidditch? Come on Hagrid, let's go and see your new hippogriff before that!"

"Professor Dumbledore, I myself have a new lesson plan, if you can kindly see it too, down in the Dungeons after Professor Flitwick here."

"Ah! Molly, what about some tea in my office? Let the children enjoy their youth, though I would not tolerate pranks if they were still in Gryffindor."

Everyone walked away and only Remus sat in his seat, across from Hermione who was looking at him. "Nice seeing you again, Remus." She said softly, smiling but just barely. He smiled softly back and stood up.

"Care to join me for a walk outside?" he asked before he could stop himself. She nodded and her smile widened even more. She stood up as well and they started heading to the grounds to enjoy some time together.

And all of Remus' thoughts of hesitation vanished from his mind.

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The two of them knew where to go, and there was no doubt that they were headed to the lake, at the same spot. And in their minds and hearts, the same memory stayed.

For a long while, they stood there, again looking out into the West, without the sunset. The sky was a little darker because of the snow, and everything was white and beautiful. Remus could admit though, that Hermione surpassed their beauty if he was asked.

"You look really well." She said softly, closing the space between them so that if he moved another step, their arms would touch. However, he didn't move and remained silent for some time until he too, started speaking.

"I presume so. But not for long. Tonight I shall turn to a werewolf again, much to my dismay." He replied and glanced at her but just barely, and turned back his gaze to whatever was beyond the West.

Hermione stared at him longingly. How long since he said goodbye, had she wanted to talk to him, hug him tight, be in his arms? She resisted the urge to touch him—to feel him, just to make sure everything was real, and that so far she wasn't dreaming.

"It's just one night. I know you take your Wolfsbane." She said and he didn't answer. How could he tell her that he didn't take his Wolfsbane? And that he didn't NEED TO either? If he told her that he didn't take it and didn't need to, he needed to explain.

And that was something he had been trying to avoid lately. Explanations. There are some things better left unexplained since it wasn't the time to explain. Not yet at least. Not now.

The silence was deafening that Hermione couldn't help but feel sort of sentimental. Something inside her, something she didn't know made tears fall down on her face. She started sobbing which took Remus by surprise.

"Why are you crying?" he asked, taking her cheek—just as he did the first time they were there and they had kissed. She looked up at him and shook her head. "I love you, you know that? I love you so much it hurts." She sobbed.

Remus broke his heart at this. If she knew the truth... if she knew that something... well how could he tell her when she was like this? He couldn't bear to see her like this, and telling her would make things worse for both of them.

Maybe it was better left unsaid. Or maybe some other time would do for her to know. Not now. Not yet. Not while she was crying like this.

He leaned down and kissed her—he had wanted to do this. A short, sweet kiss. After, he wiped away her tears and hugged her and kissed her again—passionately, openly. All the feeling he had felt inside, he made her feel it with his kisses.

Their first kiss had been slower—a little bit reserved but it was different now. This kiss with Remus was something she wanted—or rather she needed. His kisses brought shivers that came not from the cold of the snow but because of the emotions he awoke inside her.

Remus had an arm around her waist and his hand at the back of her nape, pulling her closer to him. The place they were in was sort of public, but there was no one watching and it was only the two of them alone. Again.

He got lost in the kiss. And so did she. The kiss, a tangle of tongues, mirrored only their yearning for each other. If only they could NOT stop, they wouldn't. But the sweetest things end.

Hermione pulled back, breathless. He was as breathless as her, as he exerted more effort in putting his feelings on the kiss, and for a long while, they looked in each other's eyes. He cupped her cheeks and kissed her on the forehead.

"I love you and you know it." He murmured, and they faced the West and the lake again, holding each other's hands, feeling well complete than they had ever been. Though at the back of Remus' mind, the nagging feeling of hesitation was back.

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A/N: Thank you so much for my wonderful reviewers! I know it's getting cloudier than ever, but you have to bear with me. Secrets will be revealed, though not in the shortest time. Thanks again. You guys rock!

Voldemort bless your soul. Again. And again.