Tie Your Heart at Night to Mine, Love

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Special thanks to MammaWeasley27 for beta-work - she's amazing!

He placed the improvised Pensieve under stasis, his gaze lingering on the white, blurry image frozen on its surface. "That's… unexpected."

That was Remus' word of choice. Not disquieting, worrisome, or outright terrifying, nor the plethora of synonyms that assaulted his mind at the moment. He offered Hermione a tight smile, pulling his facial muscles—despite their resistance—up the best he could, because surely he was wrong.

And, thus, there was no cause to alarm her.

Whatever appetite he'd had abandoned him and Remus dragged his damp hands along his thighs. Once they reached his knees, he stopped. Tense muscles sat heavily upon his shoulders, and he could do nothing more than lean forward, trying to distribute the weight.

"How would you know for certain?" The mere thought… The possibility of it… He swallowed dryly. "Did my wolf return to you? Did you see it afterwards more clearly?"

There was a pause and Remus tracked every flicker in Hermione's expression: the way her gaze dipped to the left, her eyebrows furrowing, the curve of her lips as they parted, and—his stomach now clenched—how her gaze traveled upwards, eyes widened as they met his. "Professor McGonagall."

The older witch had known, then.

Hermione continued, "Everyone else believed you had conjured yours before you lost consciousness, but she asked me when we were alone and I specifically told her... What does it mean?"

"I don't know," And because he didn't want to lie to her again, he added, "It is likely related to our bond."

"And isn't there any chance she attributed that to the life-debt as I did?"

"Minerva wouldn't think that."

Hermione's eyes narrowed. "Because that was never the case, was it?" she snorted. "It was a misconception all along."

The tight pull of his muscles attempting to make the resemblance of a smile returned, if less strained now. "And out of everything that's what you're angry about? Of being wrong?"

"Well... partly, yes!" A smile threatened to form on her lips, half-suppressed, and her voice lowered, "I've grown used to being right—it's a heady feeling. But even Harry would correct me if I were wrong."

"I hardly think Harry would ever dare to correct you."

"But you should have."

Remus nodded, "The reason Minerva wouldn't assume so is that she knows you. Haven't you ever wondered why—despite fighting Voldemort all these years—neither you nor your friends ended up with a long list of debts to one another or to any members of the Order? The reason for this is that life-debt magic possesses a particularity to it—a condition, if you will—for a debt to take place, one that is not all that known.

"You see, the thing about them is that they're only really binding if the person saved wouldn't repay the favor of their own will. You, however, never owed me or anyone else a life-debt, Hermione, because you're kind. Given the chance, you would do everything you could to save me," And though he had established it couldn't be true, Remus couldn't help but add, his voice lowered, "And, in the end, you did."

Hermione diverted her gaze, the slightest of blushes pooling on her cheeks, but she didn't seem to read anything into his last statement. "And what does it mean? To be my mate?"

"It—it means longing looks and a special sort of loneliness whenever you're not close. A fear larger than life that you might get hurt, that I will be helpless to prevent it. And jealousy I wish I didn't feel." Remus swallowed, "I-I'm sorry, I didn't intend—"

"For it to sound that painful?"

"It is anything but at the moment," And it was. Because staring into her eyes felt a hundred times more exhilarating than running, more calming than a spring breeze, and it almost made him forget the bitterness of his earlier thoughts.

Almost.

"You have a choice, Hermione," he said, instilling his words with all his might because the idea that Hermione could have accepted the bond between them unknowingly, could have therefore relinquished her freedom to help him while they were both splayed on a bloodied ground during a vicious battle broke something deep inside of him. And though Remus wished he could abide by his words, there was always a chance the wolf wouldn't. "You will always have a choice."

One way or another, Remus would make sure of it.

A sickening feeling clawed its way inside her stomach. Cowardice had never been amongst Hermione's faults, yet there were questions she daren't ask at his words. Answers she couldn't force herself to demand.

As it was, however, they also happened to be the kind she desperately needed. And so she made her lips part, urged her tongue to obey—

There was a rap on the door.

She stilled, the words lumped into her throat.

"I'll bring you the books tomorrow," He stated, and before Harry's head popped inside the room, Remus was gone.

"We're heading down for breakfast. Are you coming?" The boy rubbed the back of his head, disheveling his unruly hair further as he smirked. "Luna's cooking."

"There's—There's just something I must do first. I'll be there soon."

She paced—three short strides towards the bed and two towards the desk before she pulled her chair and took a seat, unstoppering her black ink bottle. The soft barbs crumpled against her palm as she sunk her quill into the ink, not bothering to remove the excess even as large drops blotched the corner of her parchment and thickened her handwriting. The nib threatened to bend under Hermione's grip whilst she scratched the words onto the paper.

I accept.

But there are conditions.

And while Hermione left her room to borrow Ginny's owl, feeling rather lightheaded and unsteady on her feet, she hoped it to be the right decision.

A half hour later, when the reply came, she still wasn't sure.

Kingsley's words stood out easily from the parchment, his calligraphy almost as striking as his voice:

Shall we meet today and discuss your terms over lunch?

As Hermione ate slightly burnt Blibbering Humdinger-shaped pancakes, she wondered if there was anything to gain in a deal with someone who just might be a devil.

She cringed. She was definitely going to regret this…

A/N: Guys, I have amazing news!

This story has been nominated to the Shrieking Shack Society's MarauderMedals2017! It's competing under the category of Best Romance and I'm just... God, I'm soooo excited!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to whoever nominated it and to all of you for your support and for keeping me going all this time. I couldn't be happier :)

If you'd like to check them out, there are wonderful stories on the list!

The nominees can be found on Shrieking Shack Society's website (shriekingshacksociety dot weebly dot com) under Awards/MarauderMedals2017, and you can vote through here: tinyurl dot com slash yblfyctm

(Just make sure you delete the spaces and replace the words)

This chapter is a little short, but I really wanted to update. I hope you enjoy!

A world of gratitude to:

My reviewers: Cori1891, Chantal9, l'amour perdu, EiraSolveig, Arendora, MissTFelton625369, Alytiger, PaigeAdams5972, spaceygirl67, Smokezombie96, and shawol4infinite.

To Elly306, LuceFray27, RachLT, jessweiss, Roseemarie, PriddyLily14, Tiggergirl007, hellogg, aviiesmummy, nw9, hotforjerrway, celticangelheart, Luna0092, FutureDust, BabeCake317, Mudblooddragonqueen, yumalatar, lizzielucky, brain. pan1392, EscapeAddict, Bobacat128, BloodyxAngel1, rosiex, Slytherin Loony Moony, Songs123, Hide97, spaceygirl67, Aidensmommy, inquisitivelife, thehopefulGinnyPotter, rosewolf44, BaileyNichole09, i'm in the looney bin, Lyra. Echo, nonlinear girl, Pophawk, musicgeek923, silvergelpen, Nicole-h33, nerdy-athlete33, Nahdenaque, gracelessglory, Smokezombie96, ConstanceV, and Florabob for adding the story to their favorites.

And to Elly306, Katt8500, havasu25, snipandsnail, Bookworm21111, Viveen, musicgrl48, l'amour perdu, aviiesmummy, ContessaQuill, xoxvelmaxox, celticangelheart, BordelineObsessed, shiitakehero, Luna0092, Mudblooddragonqueen, maggiekauffeld, EscapeAddict, vanessaxxxvenom, Xaphan Grey 394, Songs123, dralexbanner, Awsomaniatica, pricelessQueen, nonlinear girl, BaileyNichole09, CottonKey, Lyra. Echo, Keleals, mjcameron, Pophawk, musicgeek923, silvergelpen, johnsocz, ConstanceV, Siliana, Creid12, Cryptic Kiwi, Smokezombie96, graceless glory, Nahdenaque, indigo flower 94, bjrobertson1225, skyeryder01, rosewolf44, inquisitivelife, dralexbanner, spaceygirl67, Nbubnis, Slytherin Loony Moony, BloodyxAngel1, Bobacat128, BabeCake317, Tiggergirl007, Written. By. Leo, karkarj93, and jessweiss for following the story.

Bye, guys! Please review if you can – reviews are like written hugs, they keep the muse going :)