Disclaimer - It's not mine. Never was. Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling, except for Sable. She's mine. Later.


Wolf's Bane

Chapter 9

The Next One


Sable sat down on a nearby chair, content to finally have a minute to herself before pulling out her notebook and beginning to jot down some notes about the blood samples. The microscopes were set on a table to her right, waiting to be checked.

Remus, on the other hand, was crouched down behind the chair thinking out his options.

'Well, I can't get out of here without her seeing me. So... the next best thing would be..' He positioned himself perpendicular to the chair. Using his arms as leverage, he tipped the chair over, unceremoniously dropping its only occupant on the floor. He heard a spluttering of curses and the sound of paper fluttering down to the ground. He started laughing uncontrollably when Sable's angry face loomed above the over-turned chair.

"You...you," she sputtered angrily, "you shaggy headed, overgrown, mangy, sneaky...Chihuahua! What did you do that for?" Remus laughed even harder at her pathetic attempts at name calling. "Didn't I tell you to get lost?"

"I didn't want to." he answered honestly, in between bouts of laughter. "Aggravating you is more fun." Sable gave him a look of indignation before pulling herself up off of the floor. Remus was still laughing, so she decided to shut him up. She picked up one of the many throw pillows in the room, and threw it straight at his head. Thus began a nasty pillow fight that left the Head's gold and crimson common room covered in snowy goose feathers, and the two Gryffindors locked in a serious competition to take each other's head off with what was left of the pillows.

Currently, Remus was hiding behind the couch while Sable kept throwing stuff at him. He had already chanced a look at the flustered girl, but almost had his head knocked off by a flying pillow in the process.

"Come on, you coward! Crawl your mangy butt out from behind that couch! I'll teach you to knock ME out of another chair!" Sable yelled. From behind the fallen couch, he grinned.

"No thanks, I like my body appendages completely attached!But if you are that eager to kill me, come on over here yourself!" he called.

"Not likely, buddy!" she called out. The match finally came to a standstill a few moments later whenSable ran out of projectiles.

"Hey Remus," she called out, "I think the smears are ready to be checked."

"Oh, no, I'm not falling for that again." he called out, "You already tried that a minute ago!"

"No, I'm not kidding. We've been going like this for nearly half an hour, it should be ready to check."

"I'm not coming out until you do." he stated simply.

"Fine, you coward. I'm coming out, and if I see one thing so much as leave your hands, you are really going to catch hell from me when I get to you!" Sable stood up from her position and slowly made her way over to the tables where the microscopes were sitting, kicking goose feathers all over the place on her way. She looked in the first one and smiled. 'Perfect, just like I thought it would work.' She looked into the second one and she almost didn't believe what she had seen. 'Oh, Merlin. I can't believe this is happening!' she thought.

Remus finally decided to peak over the couch at Sable. She was kneeling by the microscopes so he abandoned the pillow fight, at least temporarily. He got up and walked over to the table where she was.

"What's going on?" he asked. When she looked up at him, her eyes were watery. The expression on her face was one of disappointment, she almost looked like she could cry. Remus suddenly quit smiling. "It didn't work, did it?" He asked quietly.

"Not the way I thought it would." she answered quietly. Remus saw a tear roll down her cheek, and he tried to wipe it away. She moved, but he was quicker. He pulled her into a friendly hug and whispered quietly

"It's alright. We'll think of something else, I promise. Don't let this little set back stop you." He hugged her harder when a shiver passed through her body.

"I'm sorry Remus. It didn't work out like I thought it would. I'm sorry. I won't be able to make the potion for the next full moon. I'm sorry." she said quietly. He heard her sad words, and the sorrow in her voice. He tried to keep her close, but she pulled away. She sat down on the couch and pulled her knees up to her chest. He sat down beside her and put his arm around her shoulder.

"It's alright Sable, really." he said quietly. "We'll think of something."

"I know, I'm just not used to my theories not working out the way I figured." she pouted.

"Well, we can't be right all the time." he said gently.

"You're right, as usual." she conceded. She got up from the couch and looked around. She fished her wand out from under a pile of pillows, and used it to begin putting the common room back into place. Remus pulled out his want to help her. They worked in silence until everything was back to its normal state of affairs. Sable sat back down on the couch and stared at the microscopes.

"I can't believe it didn't work the way I thought." she whispered. Remus looked at her and frowned. He walked to her and got between her chair and the microscopes. "What?" she asked.

"You don't need to worry about it. You're gonna make yourself sick."

"But now you won't..."

"I said don't worry about it."

"But..."

"You heard what I said, Sabriel." Remus shook his finger at her. She frowned and shook her head. 'He knows I hate it when they use my first name.' she thought.

"You keep calling me that, and you can just kiss your potion good-bye before you ever get it, mister." she said cockily. Remus looked confused.

"What?"

"I said you are not gonna get that potion if you keep calling me Sabriel."

"What potion?"

"Never mind, I've got to get to work." Sable said as she stood up from the chair. Remus was very confused. 'She said the experiment didn't work. What potion is she talking about?' he thought.

"What are you talking about? You said the experiment didn't work out..."

"..the way I expected it to." she smiled evilly, "It came out better." Remus stared at her as the information she had just revealed sunk in. 'It worked!' he thought, ' It worked! She's immune and she can make the potion!'

"So... the experiment was a success? You're immune from me?" he asked quietly. Sable nodded and gave him a genuine smile.

"Yep."

"The brewing time istwo months. I won't have it ready until the full moon in November."

"So, you can make it?" he asked again, shocked. Sable smiled and nodded.

"Just as soon as I can get down to my room, I'll start." she said. Remus walked over to her and gave her a hug. Suddenly, his disposition changed one hundred and eight degrees. He grabbed both of her hands and pinned them behind her back.

"It worked, and you let me think that it didn't." he accused, acting like she had hurt his feelings. She had actually had him believing that the experiment had failed. He had been ready to give up and go on. 'Some little actress we have here.' he thought wryly. Sable struggled against him, but he was too strong. He held her still until she stopped squirming.

"Yeah, that's what you get for knocking me out of a chair." she smirked, "Besides, I'm sure Sirius has told you never to assume anything when a woman cries. Those tears can mean anything. He, of all men,should know that by now." She finally managed to wrestle herself away from Remus, causing a smile to come to her face.

"Hey, Sirius has told me nothing. I don't take advice from someone who can't keep his own problems in check." he said defensively. Sable only laughed and began to gather up her things, putting them back into her bag. Remus walked over to her and gave her one more hug, just one way of showing his gratitude for her help.

"You really are the best." he said. Sable flushed at the compliment and lowered her head. She didn't want anyone to see the horrid red color her face turned when she blushed. She felt her face heating up with the unexpected compliment.

"Look, it's nothing, Remus. Just let me get started with my..." her sentence was cut off abruptly when she felt something soft come in contact with her lips. She opened her eyes and saw Remus pull away from her quickly, his own face flushed as red as hers. They stared at each other for a moment, neither one saying anything. Each one was lost in their own personal thoughts.

'She's going to kill me now, for sure.' Remus thought, 'why did I do that?'

' He didn't just...kiss me...did he?' she thought, ' Maybe he needs to see the nurse. What am I talking about? I'm not about to complain!' Finally, Remus broke out of the trance he was in and tried to say something.

Remus thought,she thought, Finally, Remus broke out of the trance he was in and tried to say something.

"Sable...I'm..." his apology was cut off when the portrait door swung open, admitting Sirius, Lily, and James. 'Oh shit!' was all he thought.

The three new comers to the room could feel the tension in the air between the two occupants. They looked curiously from an embarrassed Sable to a wide-eyed Remus, noting the close proximity and flushed faces. Something was going on, and Lily knew exactly what it was.

"Is this a bad time?" Sirius asked with a smirk, "We can come back later when you two are finished." He had a good feeling as to what they had interrupted, and Sable's next actions only confirmed his suspicions.

"No, no, it's alright, you guys come on." She said quickly, trying to hide her awkwardness. "The samples are finished, and I was just telling Remus that I was about to start work on the potion."

"So it worked?" James asked happily. "You're immune from him?"

Sable nodded and gave a weak smile. 'You don't know how untrue that really is, my dear.' she thought. She grabbed her bag and made her way to the portrait hole. "I'll see you guys tomorrow." she said quietly. Then she slipped out of the portrait hole with out a backwards glance. She ran down the hallway, towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts corridor, trying to get away from what had just happened.

Back in the common room, Remus was being bombarded with questions. And none of which he felt like answering.

"What happened?"

"What did you do?'

"What's wrong with her?"

"I...un...well we... you see... uh...oh, NEVER MIND!" he yelled. James looked at his friend carefully, trying to figure out what had gotten into him. It wasn't often that something would come along that would render REMUS speechless.

Remus picked up his wand and made for the portrait hole that led back to the Gryffindor Common Room. He said the password and went through, leaving his three friends without another word ' They can figure it out on their own. Cause I'm not about to tell them!' he thought angrily. Lily looked over to James with a knowing expression on her face.

"Anyone care to explain what they think just happened here?" she asked with a grin. The two black haired boys only shrugged their shoulders.

"Well lass, it was quiet a show. I'll tell you that much." came a deep voice from the portrait over the fireplace. Lily, James, and Sirius turned to face a portrait of the four Hogwart's founders, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff, Godric Gryffindor, and Salazaar Slytherin.

"What exactly happened? Did you see all of it?' James questioned.

"Yes my dear, we saw everything. It's unfortunate that your friends have such short tempers, though." Rowena said.

"Will you tell us what happened?" Lily asked.

"Why should we?" Asked the tall, blonde headed Slytherin founder, "It's none of your business what goes on between them. That's a private matter."

"Well, you see," Sirius said, trying to keep his temper in check, "They're two of our best friends, and we don't want to see them fighting."

"We won't tell, that's final!" Salazaar said firmly. With this comment, he received two death glares, each one coming from the female founders.

"And since when do you make decisions for us, Salazaar?" Helga Hufflepuff asked, an evil glint in her pretty eyes.

"Well, I..."

"Yeah, who died and left your pure blooded-arse in command?" Rowena prodded.

"It's one of their business.."

"Give it up , Salazaar," Godric Gryffindor said with a grin, "you know arguing with these two is pointless. You'll never win."

"Fat help you are, Gryffindor." the blonde headed man said before disappearing into the portrait background. He pulled out his want and began cursing everything that crossed his path.

"Oh, dear. He's at it again."Helga said, rolling her eyes. The Hufflepuff founderlooked over to Rowena and groaned. "Rowena, would you see if..."

"I'm already on it." she replied knowingly. "He'll be back to his normal, nasty self I no time. Just let me get done with him." Then, she too disappeared into the landscape, calling out to the Slytherin founder.

"Salazaar Slytherin, you tight-arsed, pure blooded-obsessed baby, get out here. And I mean NOW! You're acting like a spoiled overgrown child that has thrown a fit because he hasn't got his way..."

As the young woman stalked off into the portrait, Lily and the boys let out a small snicker. 'Looks like the women were in charge, even back then.' they thought. When they couldn't hear Rowena's voice anymore, Godric andHelga turned back to the students.

"Please excuse Salazaar,"Helga said, "he tends to get a little out of hand when he doesn't get his way. Privacy's a big thing for him."

"Yeah, when he gets like this, it seems likeRowena is the only one who can keep him in line. I don't know what that woman does, but it always causes Salazaar to go back to normal. It's eerie." Godric said.Helgaonly grinned.

"Man, that gives me new respect for theRavenclaw girls." Sirius said quietly. Lily glared at the boy, but turned back to the portrait.

"What exactly happened?"

"Well,"Helga began, "when Ms. Robbins kicked everyone out, young Remus decided to hide behind the couch. When she sat down, Mr. Lupin turned the chair over. She effectively began a pillow fight as a form of retaliation. That lasted nearly half an hour. Then, when they ran out of ammunition, she stopped to check the things that were on the table."

"You should make Ms. Robbins try out for the house Quidditch team," Godric interrupted, "She's got good aim, and plenty of power. She hit Mr. Lupin every time she threw something at him."

"Anyways,"Helga continued, " when she stood up, she looked really upset. Mr. Lupin gave her a hug and told her that everything would be alright. They said something else, but we couldn't hear what it was."

"Then why is she so mad? Remus hugs her all the time." Sirius pointed out 'Besides, she didn't look too mad to me.'.

"Well, mate," Gryffindor stated, "I think what really set her off was when he kissed her."

"HE WHAT?" the three students asked.

"The kiss."Helga said. "When Ms. Robbins finally told him that the experiment worked, he got all happy. He grabbed her and kissed her. After that, everything got real quiet. The lad was about to say something when you walked in." This was all the information they needed to know.

"Well thank you for helping us, we really appreciate it." Lily said.

"Not a problem," Godric replied easily, "I hate to see two house mates argue, especially two Gryffindors. I seem to have taken a liking to them."

"Well, I think we can fix it now. Thank you." James said. The two figures nodded and disappeared into the canvas, leaving only the black background.

"Well, this little piece of information definitely changes the status quo a little." Sirius said with a grin. "I could do Remus some real damage with this!"

"You'll do no such thing, Sirius Black!" Lily admonished severly. "You leave those two alone. I mean it."

"But Lily..."

"Don't you 'but Lily' me. Those two have enough problems without help from the Love Doctor, Sirius Black."

"Awwww, come on Lily. I'm just gonna have a little fun at them. Nothing major. Remus never has anything to tease him about."

"No. And I mean it!" she said firmly, "Those two were meant to be together from thebeginning. And I have a feeling that if we meddle in their business, things are only going to get a lot uglier. And if that happens, then we will never get our old Sable back."

"But, Lily..."

"Sorry Padfoot, but this time she's right." James conceded. "The more we try to push those two together, the farther they're going to get apart."

"Exactly," Sirius said, "So we need to help them along a little bit."

"We might." Lily said, pointing to her and James, "but you aren't. The last time you tried to fix Remus up with a girl, he wound up not talking to ALL of us for two weeks."

"So, you know what you are going to do, Sirius?" James asked.

"Play matchmaker?" he asked hopefully, his face lighting up in a grin.

"NO! You are going to stay out of it." Lily said.

"But, Lily..."

"You know, he's getting really good at saying that." Lily said with a grin. James smiled and Sirius frowned, pouting like a spoiled child. "Don't you get it?" Lily asked, "It's better for them to figure it out themselves. If we try to interfere, they are both going to throw up defensive walls five miles high. I know what they are both thinking. They think that they are going to hurt one another if their friendship turns into anything but a platonic relationship. They're afraid of losing the respect of the other one. Trust me, with time they will realize what's going on."

"Yeah, but their friendship isn't platonic anymore, Lily." Sirius pointed out.

"Let them deal with it on their own." she said firmly. "Now, I'm going to see if she went back to her room. James, you and Sirius go see if Remus is okay. But no, and I reiterate again, no relationship advice, Sirius." Lily walked out of the Common Room and went to find Sable.

"Since when do I give such rotten relationship advice, James." Sirius asked, truly intrigued. James chuckled and patted the taller boy on the back.

"Since you can't keep the same girlfriend for more than two weeks." he answered with a laugh.


A/N: Alright, there you go for all of those people who were wondering when the first kiss would pop up. It's finished, and I hope you are happy:) :) Anyways, don't think it's going to peachy keen easy and all red roses for them now. What kind of writer would I be if I made it too easy for them to get together? It's going to take a while. Just wait. It will be worth it in the end.