Author's Note:

(I don't really have any notes, I just want to say THANK YOU for your reviews/comments/follows/etc. because I love you all.)

The next day, Hermione once again sequestered herself in the library, and Harry found his feet leading him to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. He needed advice, and there was really only one person he could think of to get it from.

He knocked on the heavy oak door to the office in the back of the classroom, hoping his Professor was in.

When the door creaked open, Harry nearly sighed in relief. "Remus," he greeted his teacher with a broad smile.

Remus pulled the door open, allowing Harry to step inside the office, and they made for the door on the opposite end of the room that led to Remus' private quarters.

Remus flicked his wand to dismantle his notification wards, and Harry smiled. "He's still up, then?" he asked Remus.

"Yeah, he's a crazy boy." Remus smiled. "He's being incredibly wild tonight."

They settled quickly in the living room, Remus summoning tea from one of Hogwarts many house elves. Teddy lay on the plush carpet, with a stuffed dog in one hand and the other plopped right in his drooling mouth, babbling happily as he waved the toy and looked at the two men sitting nearby.

Remus resumed teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts this year at the insistence of Headmistress McGonagall. He hadn't wanted to, at first. After losing his wife in the final battle, and learning how to be a father to a boy just days old, he'd been ready to just hide from the world with the small boy. Nearly dying hadn't done him any favors, and he had harbored guilt for months, being the only parent left for Teddy.

Harry had helped him pull through, and when Harry decided to return to Hogwarts with Hermione, Remus accepted the offer from McGonagall, wanting to keep his son and Harry close. His protective nature was in overdrive since the war, and he knew that it probably was quite the same for others at the top of the hierarchy.

"You seem troubled." Remus prodded gently, after several minutes of silence in which Harry merely stared at his tea.

"Yeah," Harry said, running a hand through his messy brown hair. "Something weird happened yesterday, with Hermione."

Remus waited, giving Harry time to gather his thoughts.

"She was in the library. She's been there daily for the last few weeks. I don't know how she hasn't read everything in there by now. But anyways, she was in the back just surrounded by books and scrolls. I thought she was sleeping, to be honest." he explained. "She wasn't, but when I told her to put it all away and come to dinner, she argued with me."

"That seems typical." Remus chuckled.

"Right, yes. It is. So I just folded my arms and got serious with her. I told her she would put the books away, we'd go to supper, and then to Hogsmeade." Harry continued. "I didn't think anything of it, more I was just trying to be serious so she'd see that I'm missing her, but she got this odd look like her eyes were glossed over, and she just nodded and started putting the books away! She never goes along that easy!"

Remus furrowed his brow. He had never really questioned Hermione's status in the hierarchy, as it was rare for muggleborns to receive the gift. He'd been so caught up for years in fighting the war, that he never stopped to think of Harry's, either.

"Shit," he mumbled.

"What?" Harry asked him, a bit confused.

Remus sighed heavily. Parents tested their children for hierarchy blessings before they were walking, usually. He'd already tested Teddy! He was certain James and Lily would have tested Harry, but that information was lost with their deaths. It wasn't something parents spoke about until the blessing presented. It could be dangerous, otherwise.

Remus stood and made his way to the shelves laden with books along the back wall of the room. He pulled out a dusty tome. It looked fragile, like it'd been handled frequently and was very old.

"This has been in my family for 8 generations." He told Harry, "Every family has something similar."

"Like a grimoire," Harry interrupted, "Sirius had one."

"Yes, and no," Remus said solemnly. "A grimoire is a book of familial magic. It contains information related to the family lineage and heritage. In the Black family, their magical line was very ripe with magical instability, it's what made Bellatrix the way she was. Their grimoire held a variety of spells that would control those instabilities. It also can hold spells that only work when casting on or by a member of the family, including wards."

Harry nodded. "So, what's this?" he asked.

"This is a history of my family's hierarchy blessings and how they manifested," Remus said, the tone of his voice more serious than Harry could recall ever hearing.

"What?" Harry asked. He'd never heard of such a thing.

Remus looked more than a bit heartbroken when he spoke again. "This is something you'd have learned about from your Mum and Dad. People don't really talk about it outside their families or partners," he explained, "But, before I tell you about it, I want to just ask you a few questions. They may seem weird or feel uncomfortable, but it's important so just bear with me, okay?"

"Okay," Harry answered, concerned at the serious turn the evening had taken.

"When you told Hermione what to do... How did that feel?" Remus asked.

Harry barked out a laugh. "I've been telling her what to do since first year! It felt just like it always does, frustrating!"

Remus smiled. "Well, maybe what I meant was, how did it feel when she consented to your demands?"

Harry furrowed his brow in thought. "It was surprising. As I said, she never really listens to my demands, especially regarding the library." he paused, thinking, "But then when she did it was like... warmth in my chest. Like... I knew she needed to get out of there and eat and relax, and when she said yes it was like she let me take care of her. It felt good."

"So you felt like you wanted to take care of her. Are you protective of her?" Remus asked.

"Well, of course," Harry answered. "I've always been, haven't I? She's been my best friend for seven years. She's one of the only people I've ever know to always be there for me. She's always had my back, looked out for me, protected me. I will always want to take care of her in return."

Remus thought carefully about his next question.

"Harry, how do you feel about Hermione? he asked, before clarifying "I don't mean as a friend. I mean... as a woman."

Harry sucked in a breath, inhaling sharply and loudly. "What?"

"I'm asking for a reason. I promise." Remus said.

"Well, she's quite pretty isn't she?" Harry answered, "I think she's brilliant. Not just intelligent, but funny and kind and warm. She's bloody scary at times, especially during the war. She's so strong. When Bellatrix was torturing her, and I could hear her screaming, it was like..." he trailed off in thought.

Fuck, Remus thought. He'd forgotten in the heat of the discussion that Harry had heard Hermione tortured.

"Harry." He addressed the young man, "When Hermione was being tortured... What did you feel? Not just emotionally. Physically, too."

Harry slumped back against the couch, a defeated look bloomed across his face.

"Remus, it was the worst day of my life, and that includes going toe to toe with Voldemort." he sighed. "Emotionally, I was heartbroken. I broke the taboo. I said Voldemort and brought the snatchers down upon us. She was being tortured because of me! I failed her. I didn't protect her."

Harry poured himself another cup of tea, wrapping his hands around the warm cup as though he could draw strength from the heat. "But physically, well I hadn't really thought about it much until now. It was like an animal inside of me just clawing to get out. There was a burning feeling that I can't quite describe. I felt like fire in my veins. I couldn't focus. I was sweating terribly like I'd been running for miles, but the dungeons were freezing. My hands were shaking, I felt like... I just felt this urge to get to her. More than just because she was my friend in danger... but I don't know."

Remus inhaled deeply, steeling himself for the conversation that was to follow.

"I know why she acted that way," he said.

Harry looked up from his lap, surprise written across his face. "What? Why? Just like that?"

"Just like that," Remus answered. "Let me put Teddy to bed. This is going to take a while."