Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, events and/or places that are recognized as being written and created by J.K. Rowling. J.K. Rowling owns all the characters and places from the Harry Potter books including the ones used in this story.
A/N: Sorry that I'm posting this on wednesday and not my usual monday. School assignments are taking time away from my fanfic writings! But anyways, this chapter is super long, so it makes up for that.
Thank you, thank you, thank you to haters r gonna rock dis world (no, I don't play the guitar...but I do know how to read music), Le Grimoire (there's slightly more Remus/Hermione in this chapter :D), Uturnwow, thehpgang (thanks soo much...and I agree with what you said about Tonks, I'm not very good at getting her charachter down), and YamiClara for always commenting and reading. And thanks to everyone who didn't comment but read...I've got love for everyone, lol! Enjoy :D
"And another thing!"
Sirius recoiled slightly under the gust of words flying from Mrs. Weasley's mouth. He looked at Remus who seemed to be on the edge of humiliation or laughter. He avoided Sirius's glances.
Ginny and Hermione stood centimeters apart, whispering hisses into the other's ears. Slowly, Sirius noticed from the corner of his eye socket, the two girls stepping backwards, trying to move at an unnoticeable pace to the door. Once they were there, they were gone.
"Molly," Sirius stated, holding his hand up in front of Mrs. Weasley's face, complete with bugging eyeballs. "This isn't fair," Sirius continued. "Moony takes me out to walk all the time!"
"Remus!"
"He's lying, Molly," Remus said, shaking his head menacingly at Sirius.
"It's still not fair."
"Listen, Sirius," Mr. Weasley cooed, stepping in between Sirius and his small tomato faced wife. "We just want you to be careful, all right?"
Mrs. Weasley elbowed her husband bull's-eye in the ribs. "And stay away from our daughter," he added, oddly smiling and scurrying after Mrs. Weasley, who fled the dining room in a huff.
Sirius's slightly grubby, slender hand swept across his forehead, taking the small drops of sweat that had developed there with it. "It was worth it," he said, beaming at Remus.
"I'm glad, Padfoot," Remus mocked, moving in front of Sirius. "I'm glad that exposing yourself…I mean, exposing your whereabouts. Stop snickering! This is serious! You could have been hurt; Ginny! Ginny could have been hurt or kidnapped, or Merlin knows!" Sirius licked his lips, his tongue lingering slightly at the corners. He looked truly sorry, for the first time…ever. "If you like Ginny so much, then you wouldn't have allowed her to risk everything. Just…I know this is frustrating-"
"You have no idea," Sirius murmured.
"I do, Padfoot. And I'm sorry that you have to stay here…but you just have to deal with it. Tonks, the buttons are all wrong on your blouse."
Tonks looked down at her chest and squeaked, cheeks instantly turning red. She looked at Charlie, who was smirking, then Sirius, who was purposely not looking at his cousin, and then Remus, who was picking at a scab on his thumb.
A very, very sexy scab.
"Oh, Remus! I'm so sorry!" Tonks launched herself at Remus's knees, wrapping her arms around his legs. Remus tried to jump back, but didn't want to risk falling on his spinal cord.
"I was caught up in the moment! I wasn't thinking!" Tonks stood up and grasped Remus's hand. "He means nothing to me…I was just bored! I had nothing to do!"
Remus managed to raise and furrow his eyebrows at the same time, and made to shoot a confused look over at Sirius, but he was gone. In his place was a narrowed eye and glaring Charlie Weasley.
"I hope you don't think any less of me, Remus. Remus, do you? Cause you can tell me, I can take it." Tonks stood up straight, sticking her chin out.
"Sirius, sit," Remus shouted, pointing his finger behind his back, to where Sirius was trying to escape. With the after effects of dog lingering, Sirius shot into an empty seat. "Tonks? Please?" Remus added, motioning for Tonks to join Sirius at the table.
Charlie slid, his gaze not moving from Remus, into another empty chair.
Leaning forward, so that her chin rested squarely on the table top, Tonks began fidgeting with the buttons on her blouse, without exposing something to someone, mainly Sirius, she would rather them not see.
Remus pulled out a chair next to Sirius and sank back against it.
"So, Moony," Sirius said, stretching so that his feet could reach, and rest, on the chair across from him. "How was your date?"
"Wait," Charlie spoke up, completely missing the look of horror on Remus's face. "If Tonks was here…with me…then who did you go on a date with?"
"Hermione," Remus answered, distantly.
"Granger?"
"Yes…oh! It wasn't a date!" Remus's face became one big red blotch and he refused to acknowledge Sirius's snickering and Tonks's loud, incoherent mumbling. "No, it wasn't a date," he continued. "I just took her to the movies. Ginny was supposed to come to…but obviously she had something better to do."
Sirius winked, much to Remus's disgust.
"Why are you two, grown men, hanging out with my thirteen year old sister and her not much older than that friend?"
"BeDerZordor…whatever, ridistupidgitsI'mgonna." Tonks voice faded into mere puffs of air.
"Tonksie?" Sirius asked cautiously, leaning forward in his chair.
"Hmm?" Tonks responded, locking her eyes on him.
"Have you been drinking?"
"No."
"Smoking?"
"No."
"Oh, ok; you have a concussion."
"No!"
Sirius resumed his lounging position. "Then stop babbling nonsense. It's really annoying me. Go on, Moony."
Remus sighed, and tired to look apologetic to Tonks, but she wasn't having it. "There's not much to tell, Sirius," Remus began. "We had to walk to town; and that was nice. She told me all about this program called S.P.E.W. that she is working on; something that my down-trodden, sympathetic side liked. The movie was perfect. And on the way home…she asked me questions about my transformations and why I wanted to become a professor. She said that she admired me…which was, was just fantastic to hear. She's a nice girl."
Remus sighed again, unconsciously picking at his scab, which had obtained a new sticky red color. He almost forgot that he wasn't alone in the room.
Sirius sat next to him, a look of pure happiness across his face; it's been years since he's seen his Moony like that.
Tonks's eye had become pink, puffy slits, which she quickly corrected with a face squeeze.
Charlie stared at Tonks; a string of drool threatening to slide down his chin.
Ron came into the dining room, unfortunately, during the middle of Remus's summary. He sat next to Tonks, confused and murderous looking.
"Remus?" All five heads snapped towards the new voice. Mr. Weasley's balding red head was sticking around the kitchen door. "Severus is here, with your supply."
Remus nodded, and stood up.
"You'll need protection," Sirius stated, shooting up from his seat. "Uh, uh! Don't roll your eyes at me, Mr. Lupin. Thank your best mate for coming with you, and preventing any scuffles."
"Five galleons say he starts them," Charlie whispered to Ron, who had moved to sit next to him.
Ron shook his head. "I'm not that stupid," he said.
Tonks made as much noise as possible as she got up from the table. "That man," she shouted pointing towards the door; "is a diamond amongst stones." Tonks waved her hand around the room.
"Hey," Ron and Charlie shouted in unison, but Tonks was all ready stumbling out the door.
"That man is a git," Charlie grumbled. "He's smart, nice, and-I-have-nothing-against-werewolves, but…why is she crazy about him?"
"Something I ask myself daily," Ron added. "It's because he's intelligent, that's why. She likes to have intelligent conversations about intelligent things."
"And he's tall. Mutant tall…not that he's a mutant. But, women like tall men, and she's short! So I bet she likes feeling protected."
"But he's so old?" Ron exclaimed, screwing his face up.
"She probably likes older men! She probably feels that they know more…they've had more experience." Charlie nodded his head and sat back in his chair, eyes still fixed on the door.
"It's odd, really."
"Very," Charlie agreed.
"You know, she used to fancy Sirius."
"What? I thought they were cousins?"
"What?" Ron tore his eyes from the door, to stare confusedly at his brother.
"We aren't talking about the same girl are we?"
"Ron? Charlie?" Mr. Weasley called as he walked back into the dining room. "Oh, good; I was hoping you would still be in here. Look at what I…borrowed….from work."
Mr. Weasley laid a pack of red checkered cards in the middle of the table. Ron sat up on his shins to get a better look at it. "What is that, Dad?"
"They're called playing cards," Mr. Weasley said. He picked the cards up, lying them back down with their symbols and numbers showing.
"Oh, I've heard of these," Charlie said, picking up one of them. "Do you know any games?"
"Ow, Remus! You're embarrassing me in front my arch enemy!"
Remus, dragging Sirius by the arm, came bursting back into the dining room, followed by a very amused looking Snape.
"Well, I told you not to start trouble! The first thing you did at the door was try to, how did you put it, knock his nose off?"
Remus forced Sirius into an empty chair. Snape placed his cauldron of Wolfsbane down in the corner, barely nodding towards the Weasley's.
"What are those?" Sirius asked, immediately distracted from his hatred towards Snape.
"I believe they're called, playing cards," Mr. Weasley answered, pushing a couple cards towards Sirius.
"Oh yeah," Sirius exclaimed. "We used to play cards all the time at school; remember Moony?"
"You used to play cards, Black?" Snape spoke ahead of Remus. He walked closer to the table, but made sure that Ron was in between himself and Sirius. "I wouldn't have thought you were capable of anything but drooling on yourself."
"That's it!" Sirius shot from his chair, whipping his wand out. Remus forced his hand down with a mere deadly look. "You heard him, Moony," Sirius whined, sitting back down. "If I don't retaliate, he wins!"
Snape dragged a long, bony finger through his greasy, midnight black hair; looking nothing less than the smug king of the world.
"I know how you two can find out who's the better," Charlie said, twirling an ace of spades in between his fingers.
"Poker," Remus said, smiling and picking all the cards up in a neat pile. He sat down at the table and began to shuffle. "Play, Severus," Remus said, pointing to a seat next to him.
"I'd rather melt," Snape mumbled, starting to turn towards the door.
"Chicken," Sirius said. Snape sat down in the empty seat so fast, one might have thought he ran to it; but Snape doesn't run.
"So," Mr. Weasley said, sitting up straight in his chair between Ron and Snape. "How do you play poker?"
"This is how you play," Hermione stated, sitting cross-legged on her bed. Ginny looked up at Hermione from her spot on the floor.
After having enough gossip about Sirius and Remus, the two got bored. That's when Hermione told Ginny about a game she played at camp one summer before she came to Hogwarts.
"Ok," Hermione continued. "I ask you, truth or dare? And you pick one. If you pick dare, then you have to do anything I tell you to…or else I have to burn you, or something."
Ginny started laughing, her brain all ready listing things to dare Hermione to do.
"If you pick truth," Hermione said, her voice rising in pitch. "Then I get to ask you anything I want and you have to answer…or else, the whole burning thing comes back into play."
Ginny sat up, rubbing her palms together. "I can't believe I haven't heard of this game before. It's brilliant!"
Hermione nodded vigorously. All though she acted excited, underneath she was a flurry of nerves, constantly trying to forget how much she hated truth or dare. Hermione realized that in the face of doomed boredom, she'd result to anything.
"I just wish we had more people," Ginny sighed. Hermione and Ginny shared a wide-eyed look, before both girls screamed for a certain metamorphamagus to come into their room.
"What?" Tonks sighed, walking into Ginny's and Hermione's room. Her eyes were pink and her hair was uncharacteristically disheveled.
"Play truth or dare with us," Ginny demanded, motioning for Tonks to sit on the bed next to Hermione.
Tonks sunk into Hermione's bed, a crazed smirk forming on her face. "All right," she said.
"Are you in boys?" Mr. Weasley asked impatiently. All heads were turned towards Fred and George, who were sharing a hand and whispering discreetly to each other.
"Come on! We don't have eternity."
"You do, Black," Snape spoke up, his hand of cards pressed against his chest. "Or has Dumbledore cut your leash?"
Sirius growled, but knew better than attacking Snape with Remus and Mr. Weasley so close.
The eight men sat in a circle at the table, various piles of Knuts stacked up in front of them.
"Fold," Fred and George finally decided, in unison.
"All right," Charlie said. "Show your cards."
Sirius, Remus, Ron and Snape laid their hands on the table.
"Professor Snape wins again," Charlie proclaimed over the chorus of loud grumbling, as he shoved a pile of Knuts towards the smirking potions master.
"Truth or dare?" Ginny hissed, leering close to Hermione.
Hermione pushed Ginny's laughing face away. "Truth," she said, reluctantly.
Ginny sat back on her knees, tapping her pointer finger on her chin. Shifting restlessly on the bed, Hermione secretly wished that Ginny would suddenly go mute.
"Ok," Ginny said, a wide, cheek splitting smile slapped across her face. Tonks practically squirmed with anxious delight. "How do you really feel about…my brother?"
"Which one?"
"Ron!"
"Oh," Hermione whispered. Her head fell forward, so that her chin was touching her chest. She really didn't know what she thought of Ron. He was nice.
"He's nice," she said.
"That's all?" Ginny exclaimed. Deep down, Ginny felt like Hermione was more of a sister than a friend; probably because Ginny didn't have any sisters. She often hoped that Hermione would end up with Ron, or any of her brothers, so that she could really be her sister.
Of course, Ginny would never say any of that out loud.
"Come on, Hermione," Tonks said, elbowing Hermione in the arm.
"What? He's nice and…I don't know! You asked me how I really feel and that's my answer. I really feel that he is nice."
Ginny pursed her lips. "You don't have to take the questions so literally, you know?"
"I wonder what 'nice' is really referring to," Tonks teased, through giggles.
Hermione sank her head down again, this time to cover her reddening cheeks.
"Yes, pass the Knuts to your new kings!"
Charlie hesitantly slid the large pile of bronze coins over to Fred and George, who were bouncing smugly in their chairs.
"They cheated," Ron accused, throwing his losing hand down on the table.
"No pouting, baby brother."
"Yeah, only losers pout."
"Just shut-up, and deal," Ron mumbled, sitting back in his chair.
"Wotcher, Ginny," Tonks said, snapping her fingers in front of Ginny's face. "Truth or dare?"
"Truth!"
"Ok," Tonks said, clearing her throat and sitting up. "Do you think Remus fancies me?"
"Tonks," Hermione laughed.
"You're not supposed to ask questions about yourself," Ginny whined.
"But-" Ginny shook her head and pouted. "All right!"
Tonks sat on Hermione's bed, strumming her fingers on her thighs. She sighed four times in a row before her face lit up, and she glared at Ginny. "Why Sirius?" she asked.
Ginny fell backwards, her face turning pinker by the second. "Honestly?" she asked, sitting back up.
Tonks nodded, and Hermione covered up her spreading smile.
"I'm bored."
Hermione and Ginny shared a quick look. Hermione knew more than well that Ginny was only sharing half the truth of why she liked Sirius; leaving out the tasty fact that he's completely gorgeous, and funny, and flirty and-
"Who's next?" Tonks asked.
"I fold," Snape announced, neatly piling his cards next to him.
"It's just Remus and Charlie, then," Mr. Weasley said.
Remus looked down at his five, medium high, piles of Knuts. He hated betting money, actually. He was hoping they would be playing with biscuits.
"I think I'll raise," Charlie said. He pushed two piles of Knuts towards the middle of the table, and smirked at Remus.
"I'll have to fold then," Remus sighed. He wanted to leave the game with extra money, and not extra room in his pockets.
"Oh come on, Lupin," Charlie whined. Looking down at his cards, he reached towards the middle of the table and pulled his two piles back over to him. "Here, let's wager something better."
Remus paled slightly, but was happy to not be losing any more money.
"Who ever wins this hand," Charlie started. "Gets Tonks."
"I fold."
"Here's the moment you've been waiting for, Tonks! Truth or dare?"
Tonks narrowed her eyes at Hermione. "Dare," she drawled.
Hermione and Ginny giggled helplessly. Hermione slid off the bed, to sit next to Ginny on the floor. The two stared at the ceiling, each trying to come up with something for Tonks to do.
Tonks pretended to yawn impatiently, and fell across Hermione's bed.
"Got it," Hermione shouted finally. Ginny squealed next to Hermione, excited to hear something wicked spill from her friend's mouth.
Only that wasn't what she got.
"Tonks," Hermione stared. "I dare you to go downstairs and start a conversation about…Keats; an intelligent conversation."
"Who the bloody hell is Keats?" Ginny asked, angered by the lack of groping or deranged dancing from Hermione's dare.
"He's a poet," Hermione supplied. "You don't even have to know who he is, Tonks," she added, looking at Tonks bewildered face. "Just mention his name, and Professor Lupin will go on and on about him."
Hermione decided, after Tonks asked Ginny if she thought Remus fancied her, that perhaps Tonks deserved a chance at Remus, more than anyone else. She just needs the correct push; and Hermione, ignoring her reluctance, supplied the nudge.
"Keats, huh?" Tonks asked. She scrunched her face up and changed her blue spiky hair, into reddish-brown waves.
"Well, well, well," Sirius declared. "I always knew it would come down to us, Snivellus."
Snape and Sirius sat directly in front of each other. Each holding onto five cards, and licking their lips.
"Raise," Snape spat, flipping a couple Knuts into the middle pile.
"That's all you've got," Sirius said, pushing a huge pile towards the middle.
"I fold," Remus sighed.
"Were you in, Moony?"
Remus nodded, and began counting the piles in front of him.
The door to the kitchen flung open suddenly, and in walked a brunette that the entire room had to stare at before they realized it was Tonks.
"Remus," Tonks called, much to Charlie's disappointment. Tonks sat on top of the table next to Remus and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Yes?" he responded, mentally subtracting and adding how many Knuts he gained since the game started.
"How about that poet, Ke-"
"Why don't you end it right now, Black?" Snape spoke up. "Let mummy's and daddy's old safe buy you more dog treats and leave the real money for someone who can actually go to a store and spend it."
"That's it," Sirius screamed, rising to his feet, and trying to fling himself across the table. Mr. Weasley managed to grab onto Sirius's robes and stop him; but the shock wave across the table, was enough to knock Tonks to the floor.
Remus was too busy trying to settle Sirius down, that neither he, nor anyone in the room, noticed Tonks crawling out.
"You didn't fall, did you?" Ginny asked, barely able to control her laughter.
Tonks grumbled as she pulled herself up onto the kitchen counter, where the girls now occupied.
"Who's next?" Hermione asked. She didn't want to know what happened in there.
"You," Ginny shouted. "Truth or dare? Actually, dare or dare?"
Hermione frowned. The over-achiever in her, hated to lose; and with a dare, you almost always lost something.
"I dare," Tonks spoke up, still rubbing her bruised bottom. "I dare you, Hermione, to go in there…and kiss Remus Lupin."
"Are you nuts?" Hermione and Ginny screamed, in unison. Hermione was slightly shocked to see Ginny mad and not smirking mischievously.
"What?" Tonks shouted right back to them. "You girls are all talk! I want to see some action!"
Ginny turned to Hermione. "You have to do it; she dared you."
"I am not doing that," Hermione stated, stamping her foot for effect.
"Then, I'm sorry," Ginny whispered, solemnly. She walked over to the fire place. Picking up the tongs, she used them to grab a piece of coal that was so hot it shined with a red tinge. "We'll have to burn you."
"What?" Hermione screamed, running away from Ginny, and the coal.
"That's the punishment, Hermione," Ginny explained. "If you don't do the dare, you get burned. You made the rules!"
Hermione sighed, and attempted to pull her own hair out. "Fine!" she screamed, throwing her hands out. She turned slowly on her heels, facing the door that led into the dining room.
The men's voice sounded like mere mumbles to her; but the closer she got to the door, everything became drowned out by her over-beating heart.
"Wait," Tonks shouted in a whisper. She held her hand up and lifted her ear higher into the air.
The words, 'I quit', was heard over all the low pitched rumbling.
"I think Remus…yes, Remus is coming!"
Hermione swallowed hard. She wanted to do this at the movies actually. There was one scene where, afterwards, she and Remus smiled at each other and she wanted to kiss him; more than anything in the world.
When she felt the door open, Hermione grabbed Remus' shoulders and planted her lips onto his.
The other pair of lips stiffened, but seconds later softened against hers.
All she could think about was the way everything felt perfect right there. The way Remus's body quivered slightly against hers.
She noticed that he was much shorter than she recalled. Much shorter. In fact, she couldn't understand why Remus was exiting the dining room on his knees. He must be on his knees, how else would Hermione be able to reach his face and shoulders so perfectly? The more Hermione kissed him, the more she realized that his face was unusually soft and smooth, too.
Opening her eyes, Hermione pulled away from the kiss slightly. Casting her eyes up, she saw something that Remus defiantly didn't have.
Shaggy and vibrant red hair.
"R, R, Ron?" Hermione stuttered, before the two friends screamed like they were about to be Avada Kedavra-ed.
