Chapter 10: Stripped.

Then, October 1979.

"He has a strong third degree burns…urgent to the left. Bruises and mildly shocked…to the right, the healing students can take care of him…labour? She got into labour? Oh Merlin! Second floor, take her to Lily Evans she's head nurse there today…"

Rose stood at the entrance of the emergency room they built in one of St.Mungo's main halls. The attacks were almost on daily basis and the healers felt the need to build a room that will be large enough to contain the high numbers of injured wizards and witches that arrived for treatment. The attacks were massive and brutal but nothing compared to this one, not even the attempt to explode the knight bus.

It was right inside the heart of the magical community, right in the middle of Hogsmeade. In front of Honeydukes and at the exact day when almost the entire

Hogwarts population was there.

Eye witnessed told that there were two massive explosions that killed and injured many who were on the main street. A moment later the ceiling above Honeydukes collapsed, killing the few who didn't manage to escape. A third and the most massive explosion came a minute after the healers appeared. A bitter smile rose on her lips, wasn't that completely against all the rules of war?

But Voldemort was never one to recognize any kind of rules…

"I need more pain killing potions and we're running out…" Someone disturbed her thoughts.

"Snape!" She almost barked and the black haired wizard turned to her from his station next to the main door. "We need pain killer potions, how fast can you brow them?"

"I have some in my office and I'll get right on making more." He said, his voice hoarse. The healer student followed him to his office. Snape shook his head with haze. The last two months were horrible for him. He never thought he'd see so much pain in such little time. His mission was to observe, yes, but to his opinion he had seen enough.

Rose still waited in the main doors. More injured people streamed inside. Many of them were Hogwarts students, some were old men, some were young women, some were lucky but worried parents and some were her fellow healers. She continued to sort them by their different injuries, light on to right, critical to the left. "…A brain concussion, probably, we need to observe him, take him to the left. Glass cuts…to the right…silver burn…take him to the left we're running out of pain killers…" her words were mechanical and cynical and the four men that stood in front of her gaped at her with shock.

"Rose!" one of them almost screamed with panic.

She blinked and for the first time actually looked at the faces of those she was sorting.

"Remus!" She gasped. "What were you doing in Hogsmeade?" She exclaimed.

"We went to see Dumbledore and then went for some butterbeer." James said hurriedly. "It's my fault that he got the silver…"

Rose quickly registrated Remus heavy lidded bright eyes and the beads of sweat that covered his forehead. His breathes came in loud gasps and he moaned with pain. "Mary! Cover for me!" Rose ordered and then helped the other three to drag Remus to the first bed on the left side of the room. "Where is Snape?" She called and Sirius and James stared at her with shock.

"What do you need, Haunter?" Snape showed up next to her so fast it almost looked like he apparated.

"I need the potion we browed last night." She ordered.

Snape raised his eyebrows and watched Remus moaning with pain on the bed. Then he turned his head and looked at the three others but mostly at the two men he hated the most. They weren't fifteen anymore, that's for sure. They all changed but the sweet taste of revenge still lingered in his mouth…and what would happen if he refuses?

"This is not the time, Severus, for your childhood memories…" Rose's cold voice shook him from his thoughts. "I thought you've seen enough in the past two months…"

"You're right." He muttred and hurried towards his office.

"What potion?" Sirius asked suspiciously. "I don't trust anything he brows…"

"Snape is the hospital's potion master, Sirius, and he is doing a good job." She caressed Remus's sweaty face and tried to calm him. "How did this happen?"

"He was helping me to pick something for Lily." James said, somewhat shyly. "And then when the explosion came I fell on top of him and he got this cut from one of the silver jewels."

"It's pure silver." Peter said, looking upset and worried.

"Yeah, I gathered that much." Rose nodded.

Snape brought the potion a moment later and it managed to heal most of the poisoning. Rose sighed with relief as she saw how he slowly fell asleep. It felt like her heart returned to his normal beating rate. She could have lost him…again…

"We'll wait outside…" Sirius said softly and the others followed him.

Rose nodded and caressed Remus's face. His eyes fluttered open a half an hour later and he smiled at her. "Oh, Rose…"

"Hey…are you feeling any better?"

"Yeah." He whispered. "I felt like I wasn't going to see you again…let's get married, tonight…"

"What!"

"You heard me…" He smiled. "I wanna know that I married you before I died…"

"Don't say that!" She exclaimed, but in her heart she knew he was right…

Today.

Remus moved as fast as he could, almost running up the stairs that led to the room his wife was. When he burst inside he saw Annie smiling at him. "I was getting worried about you, what took you so long?"

"I…w…what?" He stammered, feeling like a child in the dark. "What happened? Is she alright?"

"We managed to find the source of her illness. She had the 'Wizard Flu'."

"What?" Remus exclaimed. "But I thought that this disease no longer…how is that possible?"

"We're not sure. But she knew, somehow, that she was infected. That's why she stopped eating."

Remus sighed. The 'wizard flu' was a dangerous disease that caused any food you ate to turn to poison but the healers found a cure many years ago and the disease extincted. So how did Rose get it? Remus frowned and Annie sighed. "I know what you think of." She said. "We already set guards to watch her. No one can get near her but me."

"Yeah." Remus nodded. "I want to see her." he said and Annie led him to the bed.

Rose was sleeping peacefully. The dark circles around her eyes disappeared and Remus found that he could no longer smell that horrible sickness scent he felt last time he was there. She was still horribly thin but that could be fixed. Caressing her brown hair, he smiled. Now all he could do was wait…wait for the moment she'll talk to him.

Then. October 1979.

Remus watched her when she slept. Registaring any small movements she made and any movements her eyelashes did. She looked amazing like that when all her defenses were down. One could never sleep around someone he didn't trust and when Rose slept he often felt like he was watching her stripping all her clothes.

When she slept, she hid nothing from him.

He caressed her exposed shoulder lightly, enjoying the soft feeling. He then raised his hand and looked at the white ring that enveloped his finger. Nothing felt more natural then this ring.

They didn't have any big ceremony. They simply registries in the ministry as married and they switched rings. After all, they were mates for life and no ceremony could ever top that. But getting married was important for Rose and for Remus's 'human side'. So they went to register in the ministry accompanied by their friends and Remus's parents.

Remus was very surprised when James and Lily told him they would spend the night at Sirius's apartment and that they left them one of the guest rooms in the Potter's house. James insisted that they should have that night to themselves considering the fact that they weren't going on a honeymoon.

And the happy couple agreed. Remus smiled, thinking that they definitely used the room wisely…more then once. It was now almost sunrise and Remus continued his staring in his wife's face and body.

"What are you thinking about so much?" Her soft whisper startled him and she smiled and opened her eyes. "You've been staring."

"I merely admired you…" He grinned and slowly pulled the blanket a way from her body.

"Oh my…" She faked shock. "I think I created a monster."

"I can't help it!" He exclaimed. "It feels even better now that I know you're my wife."

"Oh, I see…so you really suffered before…"

Remus rolled his eyes and bent to kiss her passionately. Rose returned the kiss, smiling into his lips. His hands explored her body in familiar and new paths and she returned his caresses smiling once more when he looked at her with his golden eyes.

"You know your eyes turn gold…" She whispered, sighing when he kissed her neck and moved lower.

"Yeah…" His voice was breathless. "Doesn't that bother you?"

She almost laughed at his worry and pulled him for another fierce kiss. They moved in perfect rhythm together and Remus's mind was filled again with images he saw through her mind. They cast the 'soul bonding' charm on each other and the effect still lingered. He could still see pictures from her mind and she could still feel his feelings when he was making love to her. The feeling was almost too overwhelming…

"I'll love you forever…"