A/N - Thank you for all the reviews last chapter! I know our favorite couple is being a bit frustrating right now. Hopefully, this chapter will help. ;) Thanks for reading!

Chapter 43

Forward

25 January 2000

"I'm sorry I'm late," Gwendolyn said as she sat down at the table Hermione had gotten them for lunch. "And I'm sorry it's taken us so long to do this."

"I know you've been busy," Hermione said with a small smile. Gwendolyn studied her for a moment.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes, fine," Hermione assured her. Gwendolyn didn't look convinced but didn't press the issue. Hermione was glad. The last thing she wanted to do was agonize about Remus again, as she had been for the last two days. Hermione pushed that thought from her mind.

"So, all the second inspections are complete?" Hermione asked.

"Yes," Gwendolyn said. Before she could continue their server approached to take their order. Both women waited until she was gone to continue their conversation.

"We had to remove another elf," Gwendolyn said with a sigh. "I thought this one should have been removed initially, but Prescott was acquainted with the family and wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt. It was a wrong assumption." Hermione bristled. To know that a House-Elf had been left in abusive conditions for another two months because of a personal relationship with the inspector was infuriating. Prescott shouldn't have handled the inspection.

"I know," Gwendolyn said, holding up a hand before Hermione could protest. "I told Mr. Satterfield to send in a different inspector, but he refused." Hermione's ire rose higher. She forced herself to calm. It wasn't Gwendolyn's fault.

"What's going to happen now?" Hermione asked.

"I will continue to work to get the House-Elves relocated. Minerva McGonagall has agreed to take on any that we cannot find new homes for." Hermione relaxed at that. She knew the Elves would be well-cared for at Hogwarts.

"Well, I'm glad that those that were being mistreated have been removed at least," Hermione said.

"As am I," Gwendolyn agreed.

"What happens after they've been relocated?" Hermione asked.

"I'm not sure," Gwendolyn said. "I hope that the Inspection office will be combined with my office. It makes the most sense." Her face turned pensive.

"What is it?" Hermione asked, after their food was delivered.

"Just a comment Mr. Satterfield made the other day." Hermione could only imagine.

"What did he say?"

"He said something about repurposing my office." Gwendolyn looked up at Hermione. "It was a passing comment, so I have no idea if he really meant it or was just trying to scare me."

"Either way, he shouldn't be threatening you," Hermione insisted. "You've done nothing wrong." Gwendolyn shrugged.

"I did back your proposal and in his eyes, that was enough." Hermione felt horrible. She had never meant to drag Gwendolyn into this. The older woman smiled a few moments later.

"Don't worry about that," she said. "I'm sure he was just trying to get a reaction out of me. I didn't oblige." Hermione smiled faintly. "Tell me how things are going in the Beast Division."

"Better than the Spirit Division," Hermione said. "At least it's more interesting. I've been working with the Dragon Research and Restraint Bureau for the last week." The two women chatted for a bit about Hermione's current responsibilities.

"Hermione," Gwendolyn said after they had paused for a few minutes to eat their lunch. "Have you thought about moving to another department?" Hermione sighed. She had been thinking about what she would do once her House-Elf law had been fully enacted.

"I have, but I don't know where I want to go," Hermione admitted.

"If you really want to work on the werewolf laws, you might want to check into Magical Law Enforcement." Hermione's brow furrowed in confusion. She knew that there was more to the DMLE than just the Auror Department, but she wasn't sure how any of those subdivisions were going to help her with her werewolf legislation. She told Gwendolyn as much.

"There is a small research section of the Wizengamot Administrative Services Division. Not many people know about it because most legislation usually comes from the individual departments, but there have been some proposals that have become law that started in the Wizengamot Administrative Services," Gwendolyn said.

"I know the head of the division and I mentioned your name. She was very interested to speak with you. She had nothing but praise for how well researched and organized your House-Elf proposal was." Hermione sat back in her chair, completely gobsmacked. She had no idea that a research subdivision even existed in the DMLE.

"Think about the look on Satterfield's face if you not only quit, but still manage to get your werewolf legislation heard," Gwendolyn grinned and Hermione couldn't help but laugh. That would be enjoyable. It would be even better if she could get Mr. Satterfield sacked. She had been thinking about it since Halloween. Hermione just wasn't sure if she was ready to speak to her again yet.

"I'll definitely think about it," Hermione said.

"Good, let me know when you want to set up a meeting." Gwendolyn winked at her, already knowing what Hermione's decision was going to be.

29 January 2000

"Harry, it's perfect," Hermione said with a wide smile as Harry examined the ring. He had put the custom order in two weeks ago when Hermione had brought him to the small jewelry shop her father had always frequented. The owner knew Hermione by name and had been very helpful in picking out a design that would suit Ginny.

"You're sure?" Harry asked uncertainly. Hermione nodded.

"Ginny is going to love it."

"Thank you, Mr. Wright," Harry said. "You've done an excellent job."

"You're welcome, Mr. Potter," the jeweler said with a smile. "I'll just wrap this up for you."

"You haven't told me when you're going to ask her, Harry," Hermione said when Mr. Wright had stepped away. "Valentine's Day?" Ginny's next match was the sixth, but she would be home for two weeks afterward. Harry shook his head.

"No," he said. "I want to do it after her next game, but not on Valentine's Day. All I know is, I don't want to do it in public and make a big scene. I want it to be just us." Hermione nodded. As much as the public clamored to know everything about Harry's life, she couldn't blame him for wanting to keep things private.

"There's always Mug-, I mean London," Hermione said with a glance at Mr. Wright. He still had his back to them, but he wasn't that far away that he couldn't hear what they were saying. "Lots of romantic restaurants."

"Maybe," Harry said.

"Here you are, Mr. Potter," Mr. Wright said as he returned to the counter. He had polished the ring and nestled it in a black velvet box. Harry nodded, and the jeweler closed the box and slipped it into a small plastic bag. He handed it to Harry with a smile.

"I appreciate your business. And Miss Granger, please say hello to your parents for me."

"I will, sir," Hermione replied.

"Thank you, Mr. Wright," Harry said. They bid the jeweler good-bye and left the shop.

"So, what's going on with you?" Harry asked.

"I had lunch with Gwendolyn the other day," Hermione said. She proceeded to tell Harry about the current state of the House-Elf inspections. "She had something else interesting to say."

"What's that?" Harry questioned.

"A lead on a new job."

"Really? What is it?"

"It's in your department, actually," Hermione said. Harry looked confused.

"I didn't think you wanted to be an Auror," Harry said. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"There is more to the DMLE than just the Auror department, Harry."

"Oh, right," Harry said sheepishly. "What's the job then?" Hermione explained the research section of the Wizengamot Services Division.

"What do you think?" Hermione asked.

"I think it's brilliant," Harry said with a wide grin. "Who would you report to?"

"The head of Wizengamot Services," Hermione said. "Gwendolyn said she was very impressed with my House-Elf proposal."

"I think you should do it, Hermione," Harry said. "Godric knows Satterfield isn't going to back you on the werewolf legislation." Hermione nodded.

"You're right, Harry, I know you are. It's just-" she shook her head and sighed.

"It's just you were hoping he would change his mind when he saw how successful your House-Elf proposal was."

"Yes," Hermione said with another sigh.

"It's time to move on, Hermione," Harry said. "I know you're not happy where you are."

"No," she agreed. They reached the alley where they could Apparate. "I'm going to talk to Gwendolyn on Monday and tell her to set up the interview." Harry smiled and hugged her.

"Want to come back to mine for lunch?" he asked. "I'm sure Kreacher's made something."

"All right," Hermione agreed, feeling like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Now she just had to decide if she was going to go after Satterfield or not.

5 February 2000

"Remus," Hermione whispered. Remus stared at her for another second before he leaned forward and captured her lips with his. Her arms came around his neck and Remus tangled one hand in her curls, the other resting on her hip. Hermione's lips parted, and Remus wasted no time deepening the kiss. She pulled herself impossibly closer to him and he gripped her tighter. He didn't know how long they stood there kissing, much longer than seemed possible without needing to breathe. When Hermione pulled away, she had a smile on her face. She took his hand and led him from the room. They started up the stairs towards her bedroom when everything became fuzzy and then dark. Hermione's hand slipped from his.

He tried to follow her, but he couldn't see anything. She didn't respond to his repeated calls of her name. Confused and worried, he turned around once more.

"Remus," another voice said, and his breath caught. The room slowly brightened and he realized he was no longer in Hermione's house, but his own.

"Dora," he breathed.

"Wotcher, Remus." She grinned at him. "Kissing another woman? And on my birthday no less." Remus' face colored. Dora laughed and Remus' gut clenched. He had missed that sound.

"This is, it wasn't, I, I don't know what," he trailed off, trying to figure out what was going on. "How are you here?"

"It's your dream, love," Dora said with a shrug. "Quite a steamy one too, it seems." Remus reddened again.

"I, I, gods, I miss you." Dora smiled sadly.

"I miss you too. All of you."

"Teddy, he's, he's so perfect," Remus said.

"I know," she said. "You're such a good father, Remus. I always knew you would be." Remus felt the tears begin to run down his cheeks.

"I wish you were here."

"I do too, love. But Teddy has so many people that love him. He's going to be all right and so are you."

"Dora, I," Remus paused. She took a step closer to him and he reached out for her, but he couldn't seem to touch her.

"Hermione is rather attractive, isn't she?" Remus looked up at her in shock. Dora winked.

"That, that, I don't know what that was. I mean I don't know why, I," but Dora laughed.

"I think you know exactly why." Remus shook his head.

"No, I, I can't."

"Well, that's up to you, of course, but if you're denying it out of some loyalty to me, don't." Remus looked at her. "I'm gone, Remus, and you still have a long life in front of you."

"She's too young, she, I, I'm not good enough for her."

"Hm, where have I heard that before?" Dora said, tapping her finger against her lips. Remus sighed.

"It's different."

"Not so much. Same argument you gave me. And look what happened." She grinned again and waggled her eyebrows at him. Remus couldn't help but laugh.

"Don't keep punishing yourself," she said. Remus stared at her and she gave him a cheeky grin. "Besides, someone else should know what a phenomenal shag you are." Remus choked on his laugh. Dora turned and began to walk towards the door that had suddenly appeared.

"I love you," Remus called after her. She stopped and looked over her shoulder.

"I know," she said with a smile. "Don't forget to live, Remus." And then she disappeared.

Remus sat bolt upright in bed, the tears drying on his cheeks. He scrubbed a hand down his face. Fucking hell, what had that been?

As his heart slowed, Remus glanced at the window. It was still well before dawn, but he was quite sure he wouldn't sleep again. Lying back on the pillows, his face heated as he remembered the beginning of his dream. It wasn't that the dream was new, in fact he'd had it several times since the kiss on Christmas. But Dora showing up, that had never happened before. Normally, when Hermione started leading him up the stairs, he would wake.

Dora, gods, she had looked just the same; hair vibrant pink, eyes sparkling with laughter. He still missed her. But the ache he expected to open in his chest never did.

He couldn't help going over what she had said. Remus understood dreams; he knew his dead wife hadn't visited him from beyond the grave to give him permission to pursue another woman. Everything Dora had said was what his subconscious wanted to hear from her. Putting more stock in it would be foolish and naïve. Remus was well aware of what his subconscious wanted.

Sighing, Remus threw an arm over his eyes. He did wonder though, in all the dreams he'd had about Hermione, why his mind had decided to throw his wife into the mix this time. It was a bit disconcerting to say the least. He was sure it meant something, but he'd never taken Divination and hadn't paid much attention when Sirius and James had joked around about their dream journals. They'd made most of it up anyway.

It wasn't as if 'permission' from Dora was going to make him pursue Hermione. His reasons for leaving her alone still existed and wouldn't change. Hermione deserved better than him. Dora had deserved better than him, for that matter.

He turned towards the photograph on his bedside table. Perhaps it was because it was Dora's birthday that he'd dreamed of her. It made sense, he supposed. He'd been thinking about her when he went to bed the night before.

Sighing again, Remus sat up in bed. The sky was turning from black to grey. He and Andromeda planned to take Teddy to the zoo today before going to the cemetery, just as they'd done the year before. They had decided to make it an annual tradition on Dora's birthday. If he was going to have the energy to chase after his almost two-year-old today, he was going to need coffee this morning.

Rising from his bed, Remus gave the photograph one last glance. As he pulled a t-shirt over his head, he vowed to put the dream from his mind. Dwelling on it wouldn't change anything.

7 February 2000

Hermione couldn't hide the smile on her face as she walked back into the office after her lunch. She had met with Margaret Fawcett and accepted the position with the Wizengamot Administrative Services. Hermione had liked the woman from the start. She had insisted that Hermione call her Margaret and was very interested in Hermione's ideas about new werewolf legislation. Hermione never got the feeling that Margaret was hiring her simply for Hermione's name.

When their discussion had turned to Mr. Satterfield, Margaret had made a disgusted noise.

"Man shouldn't be in charge of the Centaur Liaison Office, let alone an entire department." Hermione laughed knowing that not one Centaur had ever come into the Ministry to use the Liaison Office. It was basically useless. In fact, within the Ministry, being sent to Centaur office was code for getting sacked.

"I can't disagree with you," Hermione had said.

"I suggest you file a complaint with the Minister once you've left the DRCMC," Margaret said. "Maybe this Minister will actually do something about him."

"Other employees have complained about him in the past?" Margaret had nodded.

"I don't even know how many complaints Fudge got about him," she said. "But Satterfield knows which hands to grease. Scrimgeour was too worried about You-Know-Who to focus on much else."

Hermione had tucked that information away for further thought. Margaret had told her she would file the paperwork for Hermione's transfer that afternoon, but it would take at least a week for it to be approved. Hermione didn't plan to say anything to Mr. Satterfield until she knew she had the job.

Still, she was excited to know that she would soon be out of the DRCMC and on to a job that looked to be exactly what she'd been hoping for when she joined the Ministry.

"Granger," a voice barked, and Hermione looked up to see Jensen Barbary from the werewolf capture unit. "Get your cloak, you're with us today."

"Wh-what?" Hermione stammered. He looked at her as if she were stupid.

"I said, you're with us today. We need extra personnel. Mr. Satterfield's orders."

"But, why?" Hermione asked. The one thing she had never wanted to do while working in the Beast Division was go out with the werewolf capture unit. First, she didn't like any of the people on the team and second, she had no desire to see just how they treated those they captured. She could imagine based on how they talked about them.

"Look, Granger, get your damn cloak or don't, I really don't fucking care. But get your arse to the lifts in two minutes or you can answer to Mr. Satterfield." He stalked off, muttering under his breath.

Hermione thought about refusing. After all, waiting on the transfer papers for Administrative Services was simply a formality. If Mr. Satterfield sacked her, she still had a job. Unless, her transfer wouldn't be approved if she'd already been fired from the Ministry. Swearing under her breath, she grabbed her cloak and transfigured her heels into sturdy boots. She was glad she had worn trousers today.

She met with the rest of the werewolf capture unit at the lifts, along with a few others from the Beast Division. She wondered why they needed so many people. Once everyone had arrived, Barbary addressed the group.

"We've got a group of wolves that has been causing problems in Scotland, killing cattle, stealing food. A few days ago, a teenaged Muggle girl went missing. Muggles are getting angry and suspicious and that's not good for us. Only a matter of time before one of the wolves is spotted."

"How do you know werewolves are doing it?" Hermione asked. Barbary sneered at her.

"We've been tracking them, Granger. Lost 'em last month just before the full moon. They've surfaced again. We're bringing them in this time."

They took the lifts to the Atrium and then the Floo to a small, dingy wizarding pub somewhere in Scotland. The werewolf pack had last been spotted a mile or so from the pub. When everyone had arrived, Barbary broke them up into two groups. Of course, Hermione ended up in Barbary's group.

"Throw up red sparks if you find anything. Otherwise, we'll meet back here in two hours."

Hermione brought up the rear of her group as they moved into the woods. The very last thing she wanted to do was traipse around in the forest for two hours. It reminded her too much of their time on the run. Not to mention the fact that she thought this entire thing was ridiculous.

Why would a werewolf pack kidnap a Muggle girl? It was almost two weeks until the next full moon, which meant that their werewolf instincts would have been at their lowest. There were exceptions, of course, Greyback was testament to that. But even those werewolves that Hermione knew had been captured by the Unit had only attacked someone on the full moon. As far as she knew, no werewolves had ever been accused of kidnapping before. It was much more likely that the girl had been taken by another Muggle or just run away.

She wished she had asked Remus more about his time with the werewolf packs, so she had a better idea of how they functioned. Although, she was sure that he wouldn't have wanted to tell her anything. He didn't like to talk about that time in his life. Hermione couldn't blame him.

She sighed. It seemed no matter how she tried to fight it, her thoughts almost always turned to Remus these days. Maybe she should stop fighting it. Somehow, as time went on, her reasons for ignoring her feelings seemed less important. Yes, people would talk. Yes, the press would likely have a field day. But as long as those close to her knew the truth, that was all that really mattered to Hermione.

Of course, convincing Remus would likely be a lot more difficult. His nobility streak was worse than Harry's.

She was getting ahead of herself again. She wasn't even sure if Remus had feelings for her in the first place. Hermione suspected he did, but then again, she had never been the best at reading those kinds of things from people. She'd had no idea that Viktor or Anthony had fancied her, and she and Ron had danced around their feelings for each other for years before finally admitting it in the heat of battle.

"Stop," Barbary said quietly, and Hermione was pulled from her reverie. She saw that they were on the edge of a small clearing. Barbary drew his wand and squatted down behind a cluster of bushes. Everyone else followed suit.

"Hints of a fire," he whispered, Hermione having to strain to hear him. "Looks like some kind of rudimentary shelter in the trees."

"Do you see anyone?" someone else asked. Barbary shook his head.

"You two," he said, pointing to the two others in their group. "Head around to the left. Granger you're with me to the right. Stay hidden." Hermione internally cursed but pulled her wand from her sleeve. She followed Barbary around the bushes to a small stand of trees. Positioning themselves behind two thick oaks, Barbary peered around the trunk, eyes scanning the clearing and the forest beyond.

Hermione looked around as well. It seemed to her that whoever had been camping here had left in a hurry. There were still small tendrils of smoke curling up from where a fire had been lit and there were bits of cloth, likely clothing, scattered near the small lean-to.

Suddenly, Barbary froze. He squinted and stared hard for a few seconds before he turned to her. Using hand motions, he indicated that he had seen someone in the trees, just behind the shelter. He cast a silencing charm on his feet and indicated that Hermione should do the same. Inching out from behind the oaks, they continued around the edge of the clearing until they had nearly reached the shelter.

They stopped and Hermione stared into the trees, wondering if Barbary had been seeing things, when she too saw a bit of movement. Barbary looked at her, then pointed toward whoever was in the woods. She nodded in understanding.

No longer caring about making noise, they rushed towards the spot they had seen movement. There was another, louder noise and Hermione knew that whoever it was had taken off running. Barbary followed, but Hermione ran off to the left, thinking to cut them off.

The other two people on their team had reached the same spot and were now running after Hermione. She circled around and saw a small figure change course and head towards her.

"Stop!" Barbary yelled. "You can't get away, there are too many of us." There was a yelp and a cry. Hermione rushed towards the noise and reached it before any of the others.

A boy, no older than twelve, was lying on the ground, clutching his ankle. Tears were running down his cheeks. Hermione stopped, gasping for breath, just as the other two came barreling out of the trees.

"It's just a kid," one said. Hermione nodded as the boy stared at them fearfully.

"Are you all right?" she asked once she had finally caught her breath. He didn't answer, just looked up at her. He was clearly terrified.

Barbary came rushing in, wand still drawn, pointing it in the boy's direction. At the sight of it, the boy scooted backward on his bum until his back hit a fallen tree trunk.

"Get up," Barbary ordered.

"Barbary, he's hurt," Hermione said.

"Where are the rest of them?" Barbary demanded. The boy looked at him helplessly. "Are they hiding around here?" Hermione glared at him and knelt next to the boy.

"Granger, get away from him."

"He's hurt," Hermione said again. She reached out to examine the boy's ankle, but he snatched his leg away from her.

"It's all right," she soothed. "I'm not going to hurt you." Slowly, she reached for him again. The poor thing was shaking he was so scared. Hermione smiled reassuringly at the boy and gently grasped his foot. He flinched. She gave him another smile.

"Can you straighten your leg out for me?" After a few moments, the boy did as she asked. Hermione gently felt along his ankle until he yelped. "Sorry." She looked up at Barbary.

"I don't think it's broken," she said. "But we should take him to St. Mungo's to be sure."

"The hell we are," Barbary said. "The only place he's going is a holding cell at the Ministry."

"For what?" Hermione demanded. "He's done nothing wrong. You don't even know if he's part of the pack."

"He ran when we found him."

"Of course, he did, he's terrified!" Hermione shot back. "If I saw you coming at me in the woods, I'd run too." One of the others snickered and Barbary glared at them.

"Where are the rest of them, boy?" Barbary asked again. The boy remained silent. Hermione heard Barbary growl under his breath. He raised his wand into the air and shot off red sparks. Seconds later the rest of the team had Apparated to them.

"Caught one, eh?" Cyrus Warrington eyed the boy on the ground. He was the worst of the Werewolf Capture Unit as far as Hermione was concerned. He reminded her of the executioner, Walden Macnair.

"Yeah, but he isn't talking," Barbary said.

"Could make him talk," Warrington said. Hermione moved protectively in front of the boy.

"You will do no such thing," she snapped. "He's a child!" Warrington sneered at her.

"Last I checked, you weren't in charge here, Granger." Hermione glared back at him.

"And last I checked, the Ministry didn't sanction torture." There was a tense silence for a few moments. Everyone knew that Hermione's best friend was the Boy-Who-Lived and that she had a close association with the Minister of Magic.

"We're wasting time," Barbary said. "Warrington, split everyone up into pairs and keep searching. The rest of them have got to be around here somewhere. I'll question the kid." Hermione made no move to join the rest of the team and Warrington ignored her as he paired everyone off. When they had all jogged further into the forest, Barbary turned back to the boy.

"Just tell me where they are, son," he said, gentling his voice. Hermione barely contained her snort. Barbary didn't have a gentle bone in his body. "No one's going to get hurt. We just need to ask them a few questions." The boy glanced from Barbary to Hermione. She tried to give him an encouraging smile, knowing it would go smoother for him if he just answered the questions.

"Gone," the boy finally whispered.

"I know they're gone," Barbary said, a bit of impatience creeping into his voice. "Where did they go?" The boy shook his head. He shifted his leg, then whimpered.

"I can help you with that," Hermione said, pointing her wand at the boy's ankle. He looked wary but didn't refuse. "Ferula." Bandages flew out of the end of Hermione's wand and wrapped themselves around the splint that had appeared. Some of the pain left the boy's face and he gave Hermione a tentative smile.

"Now that we're all feeling better, let me ask again. Where are they?" Barbary demanded.

"G-gone," the boy said. "I w-was in the w-woods looking f-for food and when I c-came back they w-were gone." Barbary swore.

"Where would they go?"

"I d-don't know," the boy said. He looked as if he were going to burst into tears. Hermione reached out and took his hand. Suddenly, Barbary was on the ground next to them, his face only inches from the boy's.

"You're lying!" he insisted. "Tell me where they are!" The boy started to cry.

"I d-don't kn-know."

"You're scaring him!" Hermione shouted, trying to get herself in between the two of them.

"He's going to be a lot more than scared if he doesn't tell me what I want to know!"

"He said he doesn't know!"

"You think I believe that!" Barbary was red in the face. "Get away from him, Granger!"

"No!" Hermione said. She pointed her wand at Barbary's face. "Back up."

"Protecting a filthy half-breed?" Barbary spat.

"He's a child, he's not a vicious killer."

"He's a werewolf! They're all vicious killers! Now get out of the way!"

"I won't," Hermione said. She reached behind her and grabbed the boy's arm, wand still pointing at Barbary.

"What are you going to do, Granger?" he taunted.

"I'll take him to the Ministry myself," she said. "The rest of you can continue the search."

"You're not taking him anywhere," Barbary said. He raised his wand and pointed it at her.

"Barbary, be reasonable. He's hurt, he's scared and likely freezing. You have little to no chance of getting any information from him out here." Barbary studied her for a few moments, glancing down at the boy, considering.

"Fine," he finally said. "Take him straight to the holding cells. I'll be there in five minutes after I let Warrington know."

"Let me take him to St. Mungo's first," Hermione countered. Barbary snorted.

"No, Granger, the resident mediwitch can look at him once he's in Ministry custody, just like every other prisoner." The boy whimpered when he heard the word prisoner. Hermione glared at Barbary.

"Fine," she said through gritted teeth. "I'll see you in five minutes." She turned back to the boy and helped him to his feet. He winced as he stepped on his injured ankle but didn't cry out again.

"Have you Apparated before?" she asked. The boy nodded. "Hold on tight to my arm." He grabbed her arm and Hermione covered his hands with hers. She gave Barbary one last glare and spun.

They landed on the top step of Grimmauld Place seconds later. Hermione hurriedly ushered the boy into the house. He looked at her in confusion.

"It's all right," she said. "I have no intention of turning you over to the Ministry."

"Wh-why are you h-helping me?" he asked quietly.

"Because, even if you are a werewolf, you don't deserve to be treated that way." He looked at her incredulously. She helped him limp towards the staircase. "Do you think you can make it up the stairs?" He nodded.

It took them a few minutes, but Hermione finally had him settled on one of the couches in the sitting room. She propped his ankle up on a pillow.

"Kreacher," she said quietly. The House-Elf appeared with a pop. The boy jumped. "Will you make up some sandwiches and tea, please?" Kreacher peered at the boy, then left the room without a word.

"Is this your house?" the boy asked.

"No, this is my friend's house," Hermione said. "He won't mind, don't worry. Can you tell me your name?" The boy looked at her for a few moments, clearly unsure if he should do so.

"Will," he finally said.

"It's nice to meet you, Will. I'm Hermione." Kreacher returned with the tea and sandwiches. Hermione handed the plate of sandwiches to Will and poured them both a cup of tea. Will ate an entire sandwich and had started on a second before Hermione even had the tea prepared. She hid a smile, reminded of Ron.

As he ate, Hermione began to contemplate her situation. Her only thought had been to get Will away from Barbary, something she still felt she should have done. She had brought him to Grimmauld because she knew the first place that Barbary would look, once he realized she wasn't at the Ministry, was St. Mungo's. After he discovered they weren't there, he would likely go to her house. Grimmauld Place, while no longer under a Fidelius Charm, was still unplottable and had every other enchantment there was placed on it. Only a select few knew that Harry and Ron lived here, most of the wizarding world assuming they were still at the Burrow. Barbary would have no idea where to look for her.

Now that she was here, however, she realized that she had gotten herself into quite a mess. She could be arrested for helping a suspect escape Ministry custody. Although, technically, Will was still in Ministry custody, as long as he was with her anyway. Somehow, she didn't think that Mr. Satterfield would see it that way.

She thought about sending Harry or Ron a Patronus, as both were working today. But she really didn't want to get either of them involved in the mess she had made for herself. Shite, she really should have thought this through. Hermione looked at Will again. He looked so small sitting there, she couldn't help but think of Annie, Claire and David. She couldn't put another child through anything even remotely close to what they'd been through.

Hermione was about to ask Will how he had come to be with the werewolf pack when she heard a noise. Brow furrowed, she stood and walked to the door of the sitting room. She listened and thought she heard voices downstairs. She glanced back at Will, but he seemed to be oblivious, concentrating on eating instead. Hermione knew that she needed to find out who was here. There were only a handful of possibilities, not many people that weren't in Azkaban even knew Grimmauld Place existed, and since she hadn't heard the door open, they had obviously come through the Floo. That narrowed the list even further. Whoever it was would question why Hermione was here in the middle of the afternoon on a workday.

"Will, I need to check on something. Stay here and finish your sandwiches." Will looked nervous, but Hermione gave him a reassuring smile and he nodded. She slipped out of the sitting room into the corridor. The voices were louder now and Hermione heard footsteps on the stairs from the kitchen.

"It will only take me a moment, Kreacher." Hermione swore again. What was Remus doing here?

"Master is not home," Kreacher said again as he followed Remus up the stairs from the kitchen.

"I'm aware," Remus said, trying to keep his patience with the old elf. "I'm sure Harry won't mind and as I said, I won't be here long." They reached the entry and Remus saw Kreacher look at the bricked-up section of wall wistfully. No doubt the elf still missed that horrid portrait. Remus shook his head and began to climb the stairs towards the sitting room.

He heard movement above him and stopped halfway up the stairs. He drew his wand and turned back to Kreacher.

"Who else is here?" Remus demanded.

"Miss," Kreacher said. "Miss comes with him that Kreacher does not know." With a snap of his fingers, Kreacher disappeared. Remus' eyes narrowed. What the hell was the elf talking about? Keeping his wand drawn, Remus walked quietly up two more steps before a figure stepped out of the sitting room.

"Remus," Hermione said.

"Hermione?" Remus said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing," Hermione said with a small smile.

"One of Teddy's dragons is missing and he's been beside himself since he discovered it. I thought it might have gotten left here when Harry had him last."

"Oh," Hermione replied. She glanced nervously back into the sitting room and stepped into the doorway as if to block Remus from entering.

"Hermione, what are you doing here in the middle of the day?" Remus asked.

"I, uh, I just needed to, erm, borrow a book from the library." She smiled, but Remus knew she was lying. He remembered that Kreacher had said that Miss had come with 'him', someone Kreacher didn't know. That left out any of her friends. Even if he had only met them once, Kreacher would have at least known who they were, even if he didn't know their name.

Remus' eyes widened. Hermione had someone in the sitting room. Someone she didn't want Remus to know about. And he was male. Remus felt an immediate clenching in his gut. So, it had been fear that day they were picking up the contents of Teddy's bag and not desire for him that made her heart speed up. He was such an idiot. The thought that if Hermione was having some clandestine affair it made no sense that she had brought her lover to Grimmauld Place never crossed Remus' mind.

"Accio Teddy's dragon," Remus said. A small dragon figure zoomed out of the sitting room and almost hit Hermione in the head before it landed in Remus' hand. He stuck it in his pocket. He could feel the anger rising as he nodded curtly to her and turned to leave. He had made it halfway down the stairs before she called out to him.

"Remus, wait!" Remus didn't turn around, simply continued towards the entry and the front door. He had been so stupid to even entertain the notion that she might be interested in him. Of course, the kiss at Christmas hadn't meant anything. He never should have considered otherwise.

Remus reached the front door and knew it wasn't a good idea for him to Apparate when he was upset. But he needed to get out of here as quickly and possible and doubling back to head to the kitchen to Floo would mean running into Hermione. He wrenched the door open, just as a small hand grasped his arm. He nearly turned anyway but knew he would bring Hermione along with him and that was the very last thing he wanted right now.

"Let go of me, please," he said in a low voice. He could just yank his arm away from her, but he had never physically reacted in anger towards a woman and he wasn't about to start now.

"Remus, what's the matter?" she asked. He risked a glance at her and saw that she looked completely bewildered. He almost snorted. Well, at least he had been successful in keeping his feelings for her hidden. She didn't even know that she had hurt him. She still hadn't let go of his arm.

"Let me go, Hermione."

"No, not until you tell me why you're so angry all of a sudden. Are you upset with me for some reason?" Remus did snort this time.

"Of course not," he said. "Your personal life is your own business."

"My personal life?" Hermione repeated in confusion. Remus sighed.

"It's none of my business why you are here in the middle of the day with a man. Now, please let me go so I can get home to Teddy." Hermione's eyes widened, likely out of fear at having been caught.

"What are you talking about?" she demanded. Remus realized that she no longer sounded concerned, but angry. Again, she was probably upset he had walked in on her. Remus pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger.

"Hermione, will you please just let me go. I really don't want to talk about this."

"Well, we are going to talk about it," she snapped. "How could you think I would do something like that?"

"Something like what?" he replied.

"Bring someone here for some, some illicit liaison!"

"As I said, it's none of my business."

"No, it isn't your business, Remus Lupin, but for your information, I am not having an affair and if I was, I certainly wouldn't do it here!" she shouted.

"Then why did Kreacher say that you had a 'him' with you? Someone that he didn't know?" Remus yelled back. "You're here in the middle of the afternoon on a workday, Hermione, with a man Kreacher doesn't know, which means it isn't any of your friends. What else am I supposed to think?" Hermione stared at him. Remus could tell she was fuming. Without warning, she slammed the front door and then yanked on his arm, towing him toward the stairs. Remus stopped short when he realized where she was taking him. He had no intention of meeting whoever she had brought here.

When he stopped, Hermione's forward momentum made her stumble and without thinking about it, Remus reached out to steady her. His hands grasped her upper arms and he pulled her back towards him. She stared up at his face, breath coming faster from their argument. Remus could still see the sparks of anger in her eyes and for a moment, faltered in his earlier assessment of what she was doing here. There could be another explanation, couldn't there? But for the life of him, Remus couldn't figure out what it could be. Still, he didn't let her go.

Hermione stared up at Remus, anger coursing through her. He had jumped to the most ridiculous of conclusions. Why, in Merlin's name, if she was having some secret rendezvous would she come to Grimmauld of all places? Harry and Ron kept odd hours with their work as Aurors, either of them could pop in at any moment. And Remus had to know that Ginny was back in town. Even if Harry hadn't said anything, you could always tell by the change in his demeanor. While Hermione was sure that the redhead was spending the day at the Burrow while Harry was at work, Ginny could have arrived at Harry's place at any time. Not to mention the fact that Kreacher was here.

Hermione had grown up in the Muggle world and she still lived in a Muggle neighborhood. If she wanted to keep a relationship secret, she would have just gone to her own house or checked into one of the hundreds of Muggle hotels around London. It made no sense for her to come here. Why had Remus assumed the worst and gotten so angry?

He couldn't be…jealous, could he? No, of course he wasn't. That was absurd. But as Hermione studied his face, his jaw set in anger, his eyes flashing, bits of amber swirling in the green, she thought that maybe that's exactly what he was. The thought made the breath catch in her throat. She stared at him for one more minute before she gathered her courage, stood on tiptoe, and pressed her lips to his.

Remus froze when Hermione leaned up and covered his mouth with hers. A part of him screamed not to react and it wasn't until he felt her begin to pull away from him that he moved. He gripped her arms tighter, pulling her back and moving his lips over hers. Her arms came up around his neck and he wrapped his around her. Gods, he didn't even care if there was another man in the sitting room, which, he had to admit, was looking less and less likely.

Hermione pressed herself closer to him and the feel of her body against his pulled a groan from him. Hermione took advantage, deepening the kiss. Remus couldn't quite believe what was happening, but he did nothing to stop it. The logical part of his brain was still telling him that this was wrong, that he needed to stop, and he knew, knew that he should. But there was a much larger part that was telling his logical side to go fuck itself.

Remus thought that they very well could have stood in that corridor snogging for the rest of the day if he hadn't heard the noise above them. At the creaking of floorboards, Remus was brought back to reality. He pulled away from Hermione, both of them breathing heavily. He looked up the stairs and his jaw dropped as he saw a young boy peek around the doorframe. As soon as the boy saw Remus, the boy's eyes widened in fear and he darted back inside the room.

"Damn," Hermione swore and hurried up the stairs. Remus stared after her completely confused. What the fuck was going on?