A/N: It's nice to know that my kind of fluff is your kind of fluff too ahahah. More to come in the future!

Special thanks to my Beta, lozipozivanillabean. This is the last chapter set in Hermione's 6th year (Marauders' 7th). Enjoy!

xxviii.

i'll show you good, restore your faith

(Orpheus by Sara Bareilles)

June 24, 1978

"Well isn't this adorable?"

Both witches glanced at Severus, whose lips had curled up in disdain at the quaint picnic Hermione had prepared behind the Shrieking Shack.

"Wipe that ridiculous look from your face, Sev," Lily demanded with a small scowl. "It is adorable and I don't mean that sarcastically, Hermione." She crawled closer to Hermione and held her hand. "I really love what you've prepared today."

Hermione's cheeks turned red as a small chuckle escaped from her lips. "Hogsmeade is terribly packed with people," she explained. "I'd rather we enjoy our last Hogsmeade weekend together with just the three of us."

Lily's smile turned forlorn, lightly squeezing Hermione's hand. Even Sev's eyes softened as he sat on the picnic blanket beside his girlfriend.

The seventh years had finally finished their NEWTs, much to Hermione's relief. The remaining days prior to the final exams had been rigorous and stressful, to say the least. Peter had numerous breakdowns and Hermione had to calm him down most of the time, reassuring him that he'd do well in the end. Mary was a blessing as she was able to calm him down with just her mere presence. Since then, every time Peter was studying in the library for his NEWTs, Hermione made sure that Mary was there to keep his sanity in check.

Even Sirius had grown serious, keeping his quips to a minimum as he tried to cram as much information into his head as possible. Remus had been his usual diligent self, but Hermione could see how the stress of a full moon combined with NEWTs had steadily been taking its toll on the werewolf. Hermione reverently supplied him with bars of chocolate to keep him going, and Remus always looked at her appreciatively. James had his own share of breakdowns too, topped with his growing pile of Head Boy responsibilities and the frustration of studying Arithmancy. Hermione had been the dutiful girlfriend, always soothing his worries with brief kisses on the cheek and even letting him hold her hand while he furiously studied, squeezing her hand every so often to get as much comfort as he could.

Hermione was a bundle of nerves during the weeks of their NEWTs. Admittedly, she had been distracted from her own final exams, constantly praying to the cosmic stars above that her friends would be able to breeze through the most important tests of their whole life.

She was only able to breathe easy when the last day of NEWTs finally arrived. Hermione still hadn't seen the Marauders, opting to search for them after lunch with her best friends. She just hoped they were well.

Hermione sadly smiled at her best friends and reached for Sev with her other free hand. The Slytherin, who normally scorned at any affection besides Lily's, gripped her hand equally tight. "I'm going to miss you both so much," she said, tears glistening in her eyes.

Lily was comically trying to wipe away her tears but failed terribly in the end. "I'm going to miss you too," the fiery redhead said as she threw her arms around the younger witch and held on tight.

Sev sighed at their ridiculousness, but the corners of his lips twitched into a small, fond smile. "I'm going to see you often next year, I'm sure," he reassured.

Hermione peeked over Lily's shoulder and frowned. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"He's going to apply for a teaching position here at Hogwarts," Lily answered for the Slytherin, completely pulling away to grin at her boyfriend. "Tell her what good deed you've done, Sev."

"What good deed?" Hermione asked, glancing at Sev with curious eyes. Said wizard's cheeks were already blazing red with embarrassment as he glowered petulantly at Lily.

"Nothing," he said through gritted teeth. "It wasn't a big deal anyway."

"Oh, it is a big deal," Lily insisted, beaming proudly at Sev. "You know how he thought of applying for the DADA position? Well, he overheard from Slughorn that Remus was eyeing that position too, so Sev opted to try applying for the Potions position instead, knowing he's brilliant at it anyway."

Hermione smiled warmly at Sev, who directed his glaring eyes at her this time. "It wasn't a big deal," he grumbled again under his breath, petulantly grabbing onto a muffin. "I'm sure Lupin will have a hard time searching for a job outside Hogwarts because…" His words died down, tentatively glancing at Lily, who was still oblivious to Remus's lycanthropy.

"Why? He's the smartest Marauder!" Lily exclaimed. "I'm sure he'd be a brilliant Auror, too, like his friends."

Sev merely shrugged. "Perhaps he's the sanest of the lot," he coolly pointed out. "Everybody knows becoming an Auror in this climate is asking for a death sentence."

Hermione considerably paled at his words, which wasn't left unnoticed by her best friends.

"I'm sure they'll be fine," Lily assured with a small smile. "Potter's really brilliant at Transfiguration and Charms. Black and your brother are above average with Defence Against the Dark Arts. You have nothing to worry about."

"Except, of course, they're reckless Gryffindors through and through," Hermione said with a soft sigh. Lily's smile turned apologetic, prompting the brunette to chuckle. "It's fine. I'm sure they'll be great Aurors in the end."

Lily leaned against Hermione and gave her a one-armed hug for comfort. "I'll start my Unspeakable training as soon as I graduate," she said. "I can keep an eye on your boys in the ministry, if you'd like."

Hermione snorted. "They'll be unstoppable, no matter what," she said with a fond smile. "Just focus on your Unspeakable training, Lils."

The trio spoke about random things after that, with Hermione asking questions about their future. Lily was still going to move in with Sev at Spinner's End, and the lovely redhead had been gushing about all the furniture and wallpapers she'd been browsing in a catalogue. Sev would roll his eyes, pointing out how much he was dreading how she'd surely 'Lily-fy' his home, but the warmth in his eyes was obvious. Hermione genuinely felt happy, and excited, for her best friends.

"Oh, I promised to meet James and the others for a butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks!" Hermione exclaimed, as she glanced down at her wristwatch to look at the time. "I'm sorry I have to go."

"That's fine," Lily said with a small smirk growing on her face. "More time with the sourpuss."

The brunette made a face in disgust while Sev turned a brilliant shade of red. "You're both really gross. Do you know that?" she complained.

Lily expelled a loud laugh. "And you think you and Potter are any different?" she shot back. "Merlin, the googly, pining eyes must stop. It's annoying!"

"I don't make googly eyes," Hermione lamely defended, knowing full well that she, without any ounce of doubt, always made googly eyes at James when he wasn't sitting beside her. After that fateful night with that wonderful kiss, things had been lovely with James. Now that she had promised herself she would never hold back, Hermione made it a point to spend as much time as she could with him, seeing that he was leaving Hogwarts soon. Even the Marauders voiced out their annoyance with their newfound clinginess, but James would merely laugh and pull her closer to him, warmly wrapping an arm around her waist like it truly belonged there.

"She's making it again," Sev said with a disgusted sneer. "The googly eyes."

The redhead was torn between laughing and gagging in disgust. "Fine, go to your boyfriend, Merlin," she said, making shooing motions with her hands.

Hermione sheepishly smiled at her best friends, her cheeks already blazing red. "Wait, I still have something to give you both." She pulled out a small pouch from her pocket and removed two medium-sized boxes. Lily was gaping at her.

"How'd you do that?" she asked with a gasp.

Sev's eyes were narrowed suspiciously. "Did you use an Undetectable Extension Charm?" he asked, a mixture of disbelief and awe in his voice.

"Shh," Hermione furiously said. "You know that it's technically—"

"—illegal, yes we know," Sev finished, now with a sneaky smirk on his face. "I didn't know you had it in you, Pettigrew."

"Shut up," she snapped, throwing him a withering glare. "It's useful and I'm not hiding anything shady inside."

Lily looked dubious, but her green eyes were already trained on the two boxes beside Hermione. "What are those?" she curiously asked.

"My graduation gifts for you both," Hermione said with a warm smile. "Now that NEWTs are finished and your graduation is in a few days, I thought it'd be best to give you a parting gift."

Hermione grabbed onto a green gift with a silver and bow and gave it to Sev. The red gift with a gold ribbon was for Lily. "Go on. Open them," she urged.

Lily was the first to open her gift, excitedly tearing through the neatly wrapped paper Hermione had worked on last night. "Oh," Lily gasped, her eyes pooling with tears, as she gazed at the stacks of five, thick tomes about being an Unspeakable, and other important subjects she would need to pursue, like Arithmancy and Divination. The redhead had no words as she threw her arms around Hermione and softly cried against her shoulder. Hermione smiled fondly at the redhead and patted her shoulder for comfort.

Sev finally opened his gift – a handsome copper cauldron – prompting his eyes to widen. "Copper cauldrons are the most expensive of all," he pointed out, his dark eyes glittering as he reverently held the prized cauldron in his hands. "It must have cost you a fortune, Hermione."

"Yes, well, I'm a mean saver," the brunette merely said, secretly thinking of how Anya had increased her allowance for this year, knowing that it would be her last year with her friends.

"Thank you," Sev whispered, a small, kind smile appearing on his face. "I will use it well."

Hermione beamed and pulled his arm towards her, so she could hug him too. "I'm going to miss you both so much," she said with a sigh, knowing that the next school year would be different now that her friends were gone.

-ooo-

Predictably, the Three Broomsticks was packed when Hermione went inside. She scanned the whole crowd to see any tell-tale signs of the Marauders. Even before she found them, Sirius's barking laugh resounded in the whole pub, making her smile.

She spied them sitting at one booth, heads bent together as Sirius recounted a particularly gripping anecdote that made him shake with uncontrollable laughter. Remus was rolling his eyes at his best friend's antics, but the corner of his lips was twitching into a small smile. Peter was unabashedly slapping the table, raucous laughter escaping from his lips, undoubtedly amused by whatever Sirius was talking about.

James was missing, though, and after another brief scan around the pub, she saw him at the counter, placing bottles of butterbeer and chips on a tray. Hermione purposively meandered through the crowded place until she had reached the bespectacled wizard.

"Hi," she greeted, grabbing onto his elbow to get his attention.

His hazel eyes landed on her as a huge smile broke out on his face. "Hermione," he said, looking genuinely happy to see her. Her cheeks flushed when he bent down and placed a kiss on the crown of her head, unable to stop a silly smile from growing on her face.

"How were the NEWTs?" she asked, trailing behind him as he led them back to where the others were seated.

"Bloody fucking hard," he grumbled.

Peter quickly stood up from his seat when he saw his sister. "Hermione!" he whined, throwing his arms around her shoulders. "I survived!"

Hermione snorted and fondly patted his back, knowing full well how much stress the NEWTs had caused her brother. "Good for you," she said, grinning widely at Remus and Sirius. "How were the NEWTs?"

A chorus of grumbled responses ran through the small group, prompting her to laugh. "At least it's done," she said, smiling briefly at James when he pulled out a chair for her to sit on.

"I'm so done with this stupid year," Sirius exclaimed, expelling a melodramatic sigh and leaning tiredly against Remus's shoulder. "I just want to sleep."

Remus roughly pushed him away and grimaced. "I think after hanging out here, I'm going to crash on my bed and call it a day," he said with a sombre nod.

Hermione smiled kindly at the exhausted Marauders and quickly placed the bottles of butterbeer in each of their hands. "Come on, then," she urged. "Drink up and eat. We'll leave once you've finished those so you can rest."

"Always so bossy," James said with a fond smile. "Who's going to mother us now that we're graduating soon, Whiskers?"

"We're going to miss you so much," Sirius said with a deep frown, reaching forward to hold Hermione's hand with both of his big hands. "We'll try to visit as much as we can, kitten. Promise."

The younger witch laughed and pulled her hand away. "It's just going to be a year," she reminded them. "It's not as if we'll never see each other anymore."

"But it's not the same," Remus pointed out with a sad smile. "No one's going to stop you from studying like crazy, Hermione."

"No one's going to force you to eat or take a nap," James added, grimacing as he took a huge gulp from his butterbeer. "You'll start hanging out with your Ravenclaw friends and they won't even be able to stop you from exhausting yourself too much."

Peter softly chuckled under his breath and tenderly squeezed Hermione's elbow. "No one has ever been able to stop Hermione Pettigrew, not when her mind is set on something," he corrected.

"Don't worry about me," she said. "Worry about your future careers. I heard Auror recruitment starts a week after your graduation."

Sirius expelled a mighty groan. "Don't remind us," he grumbled. "We still haven't had enough rest from seven years of school and now we're expected to start pursuing a career?" He sneered and glumly crammed a chip inside his mouth. "Maybe I shouldn't apply. Despite being disinherited, I'm still filthy rich - enough to last me a lifetime, all thanks to my Uncle Alphard."

"Shh, don't let Wormtail hear you say that," James mock whispered while obviously peering at Hermione's brother. "You know he'd be hurt if his 'Pureblood friends' finally decided that being an Auror was a waste of time."

Peter glowered at the two and gave them a rude gesture. "What happened to brothers through and through?" he snapped.

James laughed and leaned forward to pat his hand. "Don't worry, Petey," he said with a wicked smirk. "We won't leave you behind." He pulled back, his smirk now morphing into a smile. "Besides, it'd be boring not to do anything for the rest of my life, never mind how filthy rich we are."

"Purebloods," Hermione and Peter murmured under their breaths at the same time, prompting James to laugh.

Their merry conversation was momentarily halted when the doors of the Three Broomsticks opened. In came Regulus Black and his other Slytherin friends, Crouch and Rosier. Hermione's eyes met Regulus's, who gave the tiniest of nods before looking away.

"Berk."

Hermione's eyes landed on Sirius, who was glowering darkly at his younger brother's back. The brunette bit her tongue, knowing that if she revealed that Regulus had been working with her to bring down Voldemort, all hell would break loose. Besides, they didn't even know what she'd been doing behind their backs. Still, it was uncomfortable how Sirius gazed at his brother like he'd betrayed everything he believed in, when in fact he and Regulus were on the same side.

"I heard something disturbing a few days ago," James suddenly murmured, leaning forward and looking very grim. "Voldemort's already been able to recruit students and had been chummying up with various heirs of Pureblood families."

Out of the corner of her eyes, Hermione saw how Sirius stiffened at James's words.

The Potter heir's jaw tensed and Hermione secretly reached for his hand underneath the table, if only to provide some comfort from whatever bothered him. His face softened at her touch, but there were still creases on his forehead. "I'm not sure if I should say this but…" His words trailed off as he scooted much closer, disallowing others from overhearing what he was about to say. "A few days before NEWTs, I received a suspicious letter. It wasn't signed or anything. It just said that if I wanted a glorious, new world, I should go to the Hog's Head." His lips twisted in disgust. "Any sane person would know it's Voldemort's concealed invitation to become part of his stupid army."

Hermione paled at his story, her hand tightly gripping his at the thought that Voldemort had invited him to join the Death Eaters. Only, of course, brave and just James Potter would never even imagine joining the Dark Lord's cause.

"I received one too," Sirius revealed. Hermione's eyes widened as she glanced at him, a grim frown on his face. "I burnt it into smithereens even before I'd finished reading it."

Peter expelled a soft sigh and pierced James with his blue eyes. "You were right," he said. "He came after me too."

"You too?" Hermione gasped, her other free hand grasping onto Peter's arm, as if her hold could keep him in place and stop him from running towards the dark side.

"We have Selwyn blood, Hermione," her brother sombrely pointed out. "It's still Sacred Twenty-Eight." Unadulterated fear flashed in his blue eyes, darkening whatever brightness they'd always had when looking at her. "He might come for you, too."

Her breath hitched at his words, her head swimming with raw fear and panic. She had tried her best to lie low all of these years so that she would never move into Voldemort's radar. She knew that was impossible now, especially because she was actively participating in his demise. Still, the thought that the Dark Lord may most likely know about her already, the brightest witch of her age, made her terrified. A flash of the ominous dark mark, green and menacing, enveloping the hotel where she and Harry had last been together, resurfaced in her memory.

Two hands squeezed her hands tight, as if trying to anchor her back to reality. The worried faces of the Marauders swam into her vision and Hermione silently shook her head, ridding herself of the dark memories she didn't wish to think about right now.

"We're not going to let that happen," James vehemently promised.

Hermione took a deep, shuddering breath, willing her heart to slow down. "I know," she whispered, her tongue thick inside her mouth. But she managed to give them a small, reassuring smile, which marginally relieved the tension in their small group.

"Besides," the bespectacled wizard continued, "Dad told me he's been talking with Dumbledore for the past few days now." A small, proud smile bloomed on his face. "He revealed that he was planning to recruit us, the four of us, once we have graduated, to join the Order of the Phoenix."

She perked up at the mention of the resistance, her heart beating wildly once more, this time for an entirely different reason.

"It's an order Dumbledore made, whose primary goal is to bring Voldemort down," Peter explained, mistaking her expression as one of confusion. "It's… I'm sure you'll know about it soon. I have no doubt that Dumbledore might try to recruit you too after you graduate. He might deem you too young right now."

Hermione expelled a hollow laugh, remembering eleven-year-old Harry Potter confronting Voldemort's soul and coming out alive. "There's no young or old in war," she bitterly said. "There's only survive or be killed."

Peter looked stricken by her words. "Blimey, Hermione, that's just… disturbing," Sirius quipped, looking deeply bothered by her words.

"You're not supposed to say things like that," Remus worriedly said. "It's… we're going to win this war, right? It's Dumbledore. He's strong. If anybody can take Voldemort down, it's him."

The brunette bit her tongue, not wanting to spout words that would disturb their innocent optimism.

"All right," James said, nervously chuckling and running a hand through his hair. "Maybe talking about the war isn't a good topic on our last Hogsmeade weekend, lads."

Sirius snorted while Remus sadly smiled. Hermione peered at her brother and saw the fear and determination was still in his eyes, but Peter started to smile too.

"I got you all something," she then declared. "Graduation gifts. Just to – just so we can stop thinking about the war for now." She shakily grinned and started fishing for four coins in her pocket. The cheap knuts she showed were eyed weirdly by the Marauders, but she merely smiled and passed them around.

"Um… thank you?" Peter tentatively said, peering at the knut, just to see if there was anything special about it.

"It has a Protean Charm, you dolts," Hermione laughed, noting how the collective clarity appeared on their faces. "Since you'll mostly be sent on missions as Aurors – and, apparently as Order members too – I thought it'd be easier for you to communicate through it."

"This is NEWT level Charms work," Remus claimed, very impressed with Hermione's handiwork. He flipped the coin to the other side and grinned. "This is actually very handy. Thanks, Hermione."

She smiled in return. "Don't put it in your pockets," she said, this time directing her words at the two Purebloods in their group. "You might end up spending it. It's complicated magic and I've spent a few days perfecting them."

James grinned and placed the coin against his heart. "We'll protect it at all costs, Whiskers," he said. "Marauder's honour."

Hermione rolled her eyes and proceeded to pull out her pouch with the Undetectable Extension Charm on it and fished out three, various sized-gifts, all wrapped in Gryffindor red with a golden bow and a letter.

When she passed the first gift to Sirius, she snorted at how they were still gaping at her. "Yes, I've placed an Undetectable Expansion Charm on my bag," she said. "Yes, I know it's bloody illegal. And no, I'm not hiding anything shady."

James beamed and threw an arm around her shoulders. "I knew you were the truest marauder of us all," he said, awe in his voice, as he smacked a huge kiss on her cheek. She laughed and blushed, pulling away from him, while Peter made gagging noises beside him.

"Please, not in front of me," he whined.

"Holy Mother of—" They all glanced at Sirius as he had finally unwrapped his gift. He pulled out a black, Muggle leather jacket. Hermione grinned when Sirius gaped at his gift and quickly donned it over his thin, grey robes. "How do I look?"

"Like an idiot," Remus quipped.

Sirius rolled his eyes and winked at Hermione instead. "How do I look, kitten?" he asked, a cheshire grin growing on his face.

Hermione's eyes sparkled, admittedly finding him ridiculously attractive in the black, leather jacket. She remembered older Sirius Black's stories, of his undying love for anything black and leathery, because it made him look like the rebellious disinherited heir he'd wanted to project. "Really good, actually," she said, her smile widening when James lightly scowled and tugged her arm, as if demanding her attention was returned to him.

"I've been dying to get my hands on something like this," he said, plopping down on his chair. Sirius didn't look like he'd shrug the leather jacket off any time soon. "How'd you know?"

The brunette snorted. "You own a monstrous motorcycle and you always wear those ridiculous, leather boots of yours," she simply said. "Why not complete the look with a leather jacket?"

"I really, really like you, Hermione Pettigrew," Sirius declared with a barking laugh. "Tell me as soon as possible if Prongs breaks your heart. I'll take good care of you."

"OI!" both Peter and James boomed, the former turning sickly white whilst the latter comically covered both of Hermione's ears. The Ravenclaw flushed red and batted James's hands away, unable to hold in a bubbling laugh.

"Aren't you dating Marlene?" Remus asked with a frown.

Sirius casually shrugged and leant back in his chair. "It isn't anything serious," he flippantly said. He then jutted his chin out at the remaining gifts on the table. "Go on, lads. Open Hermione's gifts."

Peter opened his gift next and smiled upon seeing a sneakoscope. Hermione fondly smiled at the contraption, remembering how she'd given the exact same thing to Harry on his seventeenth birthday. "Use it well," Hermione said, remembering how said contraption had alerted the Golden Trio once to nearby Snatchers. "I'm sure once you become an Auror, you'll need it to alert you as to whether someone is trustworthy or not."

"I'm not even an Auror yet, blimey," he said, cheeks reddening as a sheepish smile appeared on his face. "Thanks, Hermione."

"Mum and I also bought you another gift," she excitedly said. "It'll be a hassle if we give it you here, so Mum decided you'd get to see it once we got home."

"What is it?" he asked, narrowing his eyes in curiosity.

Her smile merely grew wider as she tried to project meaning in her eyes.

His blue eyes grew wide as his jaw dropped. "You didn't—"

"We did," she pointed out with a laugh.

Peter yelped and drew Hermione into a bone-crushing hug. "Blimey, that must have cost a fortune!" he exclaimed, his smile reaching his clear, blue eyes.

"What? What is it? What did you get Wormtail?" Sirius excitedly asked.

"A car," Hermione answered. Peter whooped and hugged her tight once more. "He'd been lamenting how he's wanted one since last year, I think. Mum thought it was a terrible waste, since we have other convenient means of travelling, but Peter was insistent." She sheepishly smiled at her brother and continued, "It's not brand new, though. Mum had to 'borrow' a few galleons from her secret Selwyn vault, so a second hand car was the only thing we could afford."

"It doesn't matter," Peter said. "I have my own car!"

"Do you even know how to drive?" Remus asked, quirking an eyebrow in amusement.

"Peter's really good with anything to do with automobiles," Hermione proudly said with a grin. "I think it stemmed from his earlier obsession with skateboards."

Peter suddenly groaned and hid his face behind his hands. "Now, I really do have to become an Auror," he cried. "Mum's gonna kill me if I botch that up."

"No, she won't," Hermione said, squeezing his arm in comfort. "You know that she'd be infinitely proud of you whatever career you choose in the end."

Her older brother sighed and grinned, drawing Hermione into another hug.

"My turn!" James happily quipped, spying his name on the remaining box. He excitedly tore the wrapper away, his eyebrows flying up to his hairline, when he saw an eyeglasses case. Hermione peered at him in silent anticipation as he opened the case. Nestled inside was a pair of black, thick-rimmed glasses, the style of which was currently very trendy in the Muggle world.

"They aren't ordinary glasses," Hermione explained as James lifted them from the case. "It lets you see through any precipitation or smoke and they will even protect you from the wind when you're flying on your broom." The brunette shyly smiled when James removed his current glasses and perched his new ones on his nose. "Also, I noticed your old glasses annoyed you - since they kept on slipping down your nose. I figured you hadn't changed glasses for years and merely used Reparos when the need arose."

James glanced at her and casually grinned. "How do I look?" he asked, his hazel eyes solely on her.

"Um…" Hermione thickly swallowed, noting how his new glasses made him more unfairly attractive. Thick-rimmed glasses suited his dishevelled hair and gleaming hazel eyes and Merlin, Hermione embarrassingly thought that if she and James had been alone right now, she would have snogged him senselessly. "Really good."

"Only good?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow as he ducked his head and neared his face towards the flustered brunette. Her nose was instantly filled by his masculine scent, prompting her throat to go dry. "Try again, Hermione."

She suddenly flinched when Peter's new sneakoscope spun madly. Her eyes widened, wondering if there was anyone untrustworthy nearby. She was then pulled back by her brother, who was now scowling lightly at his best friend. "My new sneakoscope tells me you are bloody untrustworthy right now, Prongs. Back off," he admonished.

Hermione's cheeks flushed redder when there was a dangerous glint in James's eyes, his gaze briefly landing on her parted lips.

"Right, sorry," James laughed, ruffling his hair and looking away, his cheeks also dusted with red.

Ever since she'd told him he didn't need to ask for her permission when he wanted to do something untoward, James had become bolder. Sometimes, his hands would hover over body parts society would deem inappropriate to touch in public, or his lips would travel lower than her neck to nip at her collarbone. Snogging James Potter was steadily becoming Hermione's most favourite pastime, but things were starting to get a tad dangerous, and Hermione didn't trust herself enough not to give in to too much temptation.

A handsome smirk grew on James's face as he unabashedly quirked an eyebrow in Hermione's direction. She lightly glared at him, her cheeks still bloody red, knowing full well she'd stroked his ego once more for openly staring at him, admiring how ridiculously handsome he was in his new glasses.

"And my gift?" A hopeful voice spoke up.

She forced herself to look away from the mesmerising boy and kindly smiled at Remus. "Here," she said, offering the only letter on the table.

Remus tentatively grasped the parchment and slowly opened it, his golden eyes already running through the words written by Damocles Belby.

"I really wanted to give you something helpful, Remus," she explained, clasping her hands tightly as she watched his face. "This is the only thing I could think of and Merlin, I'm so glad he agreed."

The expression on Remus's face flittered quickly. First, he was in shock, then he was in disbelief, and then a huge smile stretched widely on his scarred face, his golden eyes glistening from suppressed tears.

"I recently heard that Damocles Belby was trying to formulate a cure for lycanthropy," she continued. This piqued the other three's interests, who had all been eyeing Remus curiously when he'd silently read the letter. "So, I reached out to him and tried to help. He at first thought it was hopeless and – well – maybe I gave him quite a few inputs of my own." Hermione chuckled, fondly remembering her persistent research that would help create the Wolfsbane potion. "He experimented for months after that and he recently told me that he thinks he's created a useful potion. Granted, it cannot cure the ailment, but it can help make the transformation less painful and tiring. I think the most important thing, too, is that you would be able to keep your sanity, preventing you from wreaking havoc during the full moon."

Remus's eyes lifted from the letter as a small tear trailed down from his eyes.

"He's looking for volunteers to test his potion," she continued, "and I might have told him I know someone who'd be willing." She looked uncertain for a moment. "You are willing, right?"

"Of course," he said in a heartbeat. "Of course, Hermione. Of course."

Her grin stretched wide on her face once more. "The ingredients to make it will be really expensive and brewing the potion can take a lot of skill and time," she continued. "And I know you don't have the money nor the Potions skill, so I asked Mister Belby that if his potion proved to be successful, you'd get a lifetime supply until he died. It's – well – I hope it isn't too much. It wasn't really that hard talking to Damocles Belby. He's terribly accommodating, actually, and he appreciated my insights. I think he really, truly wanted to create a potion for people like you, Remus."

The werewolf suddenly stood up from his seat, the chair toppling behind him. Remus didn't seem to mind as he quickly jogged towards Hermione and pulled her up, wrapping his arms around her in a breath-taking hug.

"Thank you, Hermione," he said, voice thick with emotion, even though more tears didn't fall from his eyes. "This is— I can't— thank you."

Tears formed in Hermione's eyes as she tenderly returned the hug. "Your ailment… it's just that, Remus," she said. "It doesn't make you a monster, you know. I hope you'll soon accept that."

He squeezed her tight, prompting her to expel a surprised squeak.

"Oi!" James then exclaimed. "Stop harassing my girlfriend, you berk."

Remus laughed and slowly released Hermione, the tears he'd been suppressing now tumbling down from his eyes. Hermione beamed at the others, noting how their eyes were extra glassier now, undoubtedly happy for their best friend too.

-ooo-

"I still have a gift for you, actually."

James stopped walking and turned to Hermione, question in his eyes. "Yeah?" he asked, squeezing her hand slightly as a small smile appeared on his face. "Why didn't you give it to me back at the Three Broomsticks?"

Hermione flushed. "It's— never mind that," she snapped, already pulling out the amulet she'd spent the last few months perfecting. As opposed to the red one she'd given to Peter years ago, the gemstone hanging on the brown thread was a handsome shade of light brown with flecks of mossy green that glinted brightly when hit by moonlight.

Like James's eyes.

"It's an amulet," she explained, unsure why she couldn't meet his eyes. "It's supposed to protect you from dark magic. You know, make invisible shields that can dampen the damage or… or alert you if a dark spell comes your way. It's going to be useful once you become an Auror and an Order member."

When silence met her words, she hesitantly glanced back at James. He was gazing at her intensely, prompting her to thickly swallow. "I– I mean, it isn't really that special," she hotly continued. "I've given Peter one before for his protection, too, so you're not the only one who has an amulet made by me."

James laughed and easily slid an arm around her waist, pulling her flush against his chest. "You don't have to deny that I'm special to you, Hermione," he cheekily said, sneakily placing a light kiss on her lips that almost made her heart burst out from her chest.

"Now, don't get too cocky," she breathlessly whispered, meaning for her words to be indignant, but her brain was already fuzzy at his close proximity. "You might flunk your Concealment and Disguise test, for failing to hide that humongous ego of yours."

James laughed again and leant down, capturing Hermione's lips once more. Whatever thoughts she had in mind, all flew out of the window, as she eagerly tiptoed to press herself closer to him. James grinned against her lips and pulled away. Hermione embarrassingly released a soft whine in protest, prompting his grin to widen.

"So, I stumbled upon this nifty alcove yesterday," he casually said, already tugging Hermione to Merlin-knows-where. "It's quite hidden, not even Filch could find it."

Her lower abdomen twitched sinfully at how he threw her a suggestive smirk. "Um… curfew's in a few," she distractedly said.

"I'm Head Boy," he stated matter-of-factly. "I can always tell Filch I've been teaching you a lesson if we get caught."

Her eyes widened, scandalised at his innuendo.

"I'm kidding, Hermione, Merlin," James exclaimed with a small, nervous laugh. "We're going to take things slow, remember?"

She swatted his arm. "Berk," she said, trying to bite her lips to stop from grinning silly when James laughed again and proceeded to pull her inside the hidden alcove he'd discovered.

June 30, 1978

Hermione beamed brightly and clapped enthusiastically as Lily finished her graduation speech and smiled warmly at the crowd. Her eyes lingered on Sev, who was proudly smiling at his girlfriend.

Headmaster Dumbledore then stood up and approached the graduating class of 1978, pride clear in his twinkling blue eyes. "Before I send you off into the real world," he started, a kind, small smile appearing on his wrinkled face, "I would like to remind you that at times like this, we have to start choosing a side." His smile faltered, his eyes dimmed a bit, and Hermione paled, recognising that look after seeing it a lot in the past. "I may not be able to dictate what choices you make in the future, but know this, my dear students, that I hope you make all the right choices. You may stumble down and swerve from the correct path, but never lose sight of what you truly believe in. I will not sugar-coat my words and promise that the real world will be a bright, exciting adventure, because it is not." He paused and pinned the whole crowd with a stare. When his eyes briefly landed on Hermione's, she took a sharp intake of breath, overwhelmed by sudden emotions – of fear and uncertainty – and she was only able to breathe easy when he looked away.

"Know who your friends are because they will help you walk through life," he added, his voice now softer. "Remember the only thing that can conquer evil is love." He briefly smiled, noting how some of the students, and even the guests rolled their eyes at his clichéd speech. "It is true, nonetheless. Thus, love hard. Love fierce. Love unwaveringly. That is the only time when light can truly shine upon us."

He then brandished his wand with a flourish and made a series of complicated spells. Hermione felt a shiver as collectively, all the House colours of the graduating students were stripped from their robes. Now, they all bore identical black robes, reminiscent of how they had all looked as frightened first years - hope and nervous anticipation in their eyes.

"Congratulations to the Class of 1978," the Headmaster finished with a boom. "Allons-y!"

Hermione snorted at his ridiculous quip, which was so Dumbledore, and laughed when the seventh years echoed it with enthusiasm.

After the graduation ceremony, Hermione was pulled into various directions. Posing with Anya and Peter to add to their growing collection of pictures, laughing and crying with Lily and Sev as they tried to knock the breath out of Hermione by hugging her really tightly, and trying to dodge the playful pats and pinches by the Marauders.

"ATTENTION, EVERYBODY!"

The crowd grew silent as they stared at the front of the Great Hall. Hermione's eyes widened at seeing James standing on top of Dumbledore's podium, as if he had no care in the world. The professors were looking at James in horror, but the other Marauders erected a protective shield around James.

Hermione exchanged glances at Lily. "Aren't you going to do something as Head Girl?" she asked, unable to suppress a smile from growing.

Lily gave her a smirk. "I'm not Head Girl anymore," she simply said.

Hermione snorted and looked back at her boyfriend.

"It has been a great pleasure entertaining you all for the past seven years," he continued with his Sonorus-ed voice. "But alas, all good things must come to an end. I would like to thank all of you who have supported us through and through, and although there have been some huge roadblocks to our path as the greatest pranksters Hogwarts has ever had the privilege of seeing – huge shout out to you Filch and your ugly cat! – I think we've served this school well."

His eyes briefly landed on Hermione and he smirked, prompting her to roll her eyes. "And thus, dear professors, teachers, and guests, Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs are officially signing out."

The four Gryffindors deeply bowed and the whole crowd erupted into raucous applause. Even Lily was screaming at the top of her lungs, excitedly clapping for these rowdy boys that used to make her life a living hell. Hermione laughed and heartily clapped for her boys.

"FOR HOGWARTS!" James screamed, pointing his wand upwards.

"FOR HOGWARTS!" Peter, Sirius and Remus repeated, also with pointed wands.

The protective shield surrounding James shattered with a loud boom, as identical lights shot out from their wands. The lights flew out of the Great Hall and everybody excitedly ran outside, wanting to see the last spectacular performance the Marauders would create.

Hermione grinned widely as the lights shot upwards like fireworks into the sky and burst into multi-coloured sparkles, forming distinctive shapes of a stag, a dog, a wolf, and a rat. The four animals pranced playfully in the air before coalescing into one image – that of the Hogwarts crest. The whole crowd cheered once more as more fireworks were released into the air, much to Filch's disgruntlement and Dumbledore's delight.

"So," James said, sliding beside her and wrapping an arm around her shoulders, "was it spectacular enough?"

Hermione smiled widely at the wizard beside her. "You're definitely leaving with a boom," she pointed out with a laugh. She looked back at the sky, delighted as more fireworks sparkled in the sky, colourful showers raining down, before disappearing into smoke and being swept idly away by the wind.

"Whose idea was this?" she asked.

He squeezed her shoulder affectionately, forcing her to look back at him. "All four of us, of course," he stated matter-of-factly.

Hermione's eyes landed on the other three - Sirius and Peter were jumping up and down like giddy, little boys while Remus boisterously laughed, tears of happiness already trailing down from his golden eyes.

"Hogwarts will not be the same without you four," she whispered amidst the cheering crowd, as sadness crept into her heart.

James placed a sweet kiss on the side of her temple. "All good things must come to an end," he echoed with a sad smile. "Besides, the four of us will have plenty of fun in the outside world. I can't wait for you to join us out there, Whiskers."

She looked up at the sky once more and smiled. For now, there was no war outside, no horcruxes to hunt, and no Dark Lords to kill. There was only Hogwarts, and this warm boy, and hope – for a brighter future, for a better future.

"I can't wait either."

A/N: So… um it's my birthday today so as a gift, I present to you Bold/Cheeky James. I know y'all love Jealous James but, personally, this side of him is my favorite hahahahaha. Also, kudos to those who spotted the Doctor Who reference hahaha.

So, the Marauders, Lily, and Sev are already graduates but they'll still appear in a lot of scenes in the future. I promise! More Jamione too of course (duh hahah). The next two chapters will be about Hermione's very eventful summer and oh boy, I can't wait for this fic to reach Hermione's 7th year hehe.

See you tomorrow!

With love,
WickedlyAwesomeMe

P.S. Follow me on tumblr! (kimmy-writes)