Hermione was shuffling her shoes on the carpet, trying to muster up the nerve. How was she going to explain it? Well, it wouldn't be a far stretch to suggest it would make him happy. She could even offer Ginny to go get him after she found a place if he really couldn't tolerate her anymore…
"Remus," Hermione started, tapping her fingers on the table in front of them.
He didn't look at her while reading through the reports and shifting his posture. "Yes, Miss Granger?"
"I was wondering if," she paused and shook her head. "Never mind, it's silly."
Remus glanced over the pages at her with a risen eyebrow. "So for the sake of argument on quality of silliness, I have to ask; what is it?"
She bit her lower lip and huffed when he wouldn't release her from his scrutinizing gaze. "Can you and Sirius watch Crooks for a while? I'm not going to have room for him, so I figured you both did such a stellar job the first time," Hermione mumbled, hiding a good portion of her blush within her curly hair.
Now she had his full attention as he set down the papers. "What's wrong?" he questioned as his concern was etched on his face.
Hermione now was entirely mortified. "I, well, it," she stumbled and then hemmed. "I am in the process of finding a new place and Ginny's mom is allergic to cats so I can't bring him with me while I stay with them."
He reached out and squeezed her hand. "Of course, whatever you need. However long you need us to watch him for you we'll be glad to do so," Remus responded with a soft smile.
It put Hermione at ease that he didn't ask for the details. He didn't criticize her and tell her what she should do. There was something so remarkable about the gentle professor. It made her miss him that much more. She removed her hand from his but slanted her head while looking at him. "Can we talk about why we aren't friendly anymore?" Her questioned caused him to bristle.
"Well, I don't think we aren't friendly. Do you?"
Hermione rolled her eyes, and her expression was very sarcastic in nature. "Remus you made the excuse that you needed to file reports that weren't due for a week to avoid having lunch with me last Thursday."
His cheeks lit up with bright color as he cleared his throat. "Well, I mean. We are professional, aren't we?"
"Has backpedaling ever worked for you? Ginny always calls me out on mine when I'm especially uncomfortable," Hermione confessed, sitting back in her chair. "I miss our conversations. You are the most intelligent person I know. It was different to have someone witty to talk to."
Remus slumped slightly, and Hermione could read defeat on his features. "I just thought it would be more appropriate if we stayed professional. I would hate for you to assume I wanted anything from you," He said with a strained tone.
"Want anything from me? As in what? You're talking me in circles," Hermione laughed shaking her head. "Remus, I just want us to continue our friendship, I don't assume anything. It isn't in my nature to expect anything from anyone. Did you want something from me that I was unaware of?"
"No, of course not," He murmured as he glanced away from her eyes and to the pages on the table. "I just don't want there to be confusion there. A vibrant young woman doesn't befriend an old professor without there being talk."
"Talk?" she echoed with a frown.
Remus looked tortured by the conversation as he squirmed a little in his chair before exhaling. "Hermione, there's always the concept that I would be trying to prey on you. I hear what others have to say about our close proximity in the last month. It would not be a hard stretch of the imagination for others to assume I just want to sleep with you." He said bluntly.
The woman nearly lost her composure when her body stiffened. "Sleep with me? You haven't said or done anything to suggest such."
He swallowed and waved his hand in the air. "Not a proposition I would throw around at work, but it has happened by other blokes and most men are baser animals," Remus finished with a smile in an attempt to lighten the conversation.
Hermione giggled despite the awkwardness of the topic at hand. "Well, no one accused you of being a baser animal," she retorted with a smile.
"You would be surprised at the ten seconds it takes to turn a man into a randy primate. I'm unfortunately not absolved of that gut reaction that is genetically placed in males," Remus responded with a shrug of his shoulders.
Hermione nipped at her bottom lip under his gaze and shied away. Her eyes took in the appearance of her faded paint on her nails as a pleasant distraction. "Well, you're not the ill sort," she mumbled finally.
There was something wounded about her demeanor which caused Remus a mild ping of distress. He knew it wasn't him, but something was shelling the woman off from the conversation at his confession. Moving from his chair, he maneuvered around the table and sat next to her in the empty seat. The man reached out and snagged her fingers in his. "Hermione, I'm not asking you to explain yourself, but I do want you to know one thing. I will never compromise your comfort or personal space, ever. Do you understand?"
Hermione nodded slowly and glanced up at him through her eyelashes. "Yes, thank you."
"I respect and honor you as a woman and an equal. Understood?"
She bobbed her head again, but this time she smiled and met his stare fully. "Yes, thank you, Remus. I respect you immensely as well."
"Someone needs to I suppose," he snickered with a playful grin.
"You're quite easily the most respectable man I know, Remus. It's hard to believe your friend is quite deplorable I must say," Hermione replied.
They broke into laughter as he pulled a healthy distance from her with a nod. "Yes, my wonderfully explicit friend. He's the more distracted one out of the two of us."
"I won't get some disease from him trying to snog me will I?" She asked in a playful tone, but Remus hemmed.
"No, not from him at least."
Hermione arched an eyebrow and tilted her head. "Oh?"
"Professor Lupin, Regulus is here," Luna announced in an airy tone as she walked into his office.
Remus stood up and cleared his throat. "We will continue this later? I have a meeting with Regulus about the new upgrades I need for the lion's exhibit."
Hermione motioned agreement and stood up. "I will just head over to finish my observations of the reptiles."
Hermione moved to leave next to Luna as Regulus entered. His fixed lips curled as he waved at her. "Good evening, Miss Granger. I hope you are enjoying your Tuesday." Regulus declared.
"Most certainly, Mr. Black. Have a fantastic evening," Hermione responded before leaving.
Regulus shut the door behind him, and his eyebrow inched up slightly. "Her color is most certainly green. I should have commented on that lovely dress," He snickered, and Remus frowned.
"The exhibit, Regulus," Remus reminded him with a pinched expression.
"I suppose," He sighed as his black hair swayed. "We can talk women later; I know you just loathe that."
"Lions, might I remind you, Reg," Remus snapped, sitting at his desk.
"Ah, yes, lions…" Regulus trailed off as he sat down across from the other man. "Now, show me the estimates."
Remus had walked in the door later than usual.
He had not expected Hermione to be waiting for him after the meeting with Regulus ran late. When they ended up walking to the carpark together, she asked if he would join her for tea at the café down the street from their homes. He dumbly agreed in surprise and a bit of hesitance.
They became engrossed in a massive conversation about the science of genetics verses taught behavior in animals. This was a topic Remus enjoyed the challenge of because she was so much in the belief of nature versus nurture. Which the small amount of competitive nature of his own was stoked, and they pressed solid points on both sides.
Shedding his boots at the entrance, he noted the loud rock music from the kitchen. The sandy-haired man was curious, but not remarkably surprised when he entered the room and saw Sirius cooking half-naked at the stove and listening to the radio.
"I'm always shocked to see you without company on nights like this," Remus shouted with a teasing smile.
"I can't expect my wife to come home without a meal prepared," Sirius retorted without turning. "Why are you so late?"
"I went and had tea with Hermione," He replied, causing the dark-haired man to shut off the radio swiftly.
Sirius turned to him with a frown. "Hermione? The girl you swore up and down you wouldn't want to see outside of work?"
"The very one," Remus agreed. "Something's happened. She needs us to take Toby for a while."
Sirius went from mildly confused to a scowl that almost seemed a cross between amused and irritated. "Now, why would she need us to do that?"
"I suppose she is looking for a new place. I didn't ask her why."
"A new place?" Sirius echoed and smirked. "Ask her to come live here."
"Of all the stupid things," Remus grumbled, running a hand through his hair. "Speaking of dunderheads… your brother, what of him and that twitchy girl he was seeing?"
Sirius waved his hand elaborately before turning back to the stir-fry. "God, that hellish woman? He finally got rid of her a few months ago; I thought I told you that?"
"How old do you suppose she was?" Remus mused as he sat down at the counter.
"Thirties? No older than forty, why?"
"He seems to have taken a remarkable interest in Hermione."
Sirius glanced over his shoulder at him with a look of skepticism. "My brother doesn't date swotty girls, Moony."
"Neither do you, but that hasn't stopped you."
Sirius laughed and waved the large spoon in the air. "I don't date. I shag, immerse and utterly destroy them."
"You would for the right woman, Pads," Remus sighed, running his fingers on the counter. "We're going to see more of Hermione; she's going to stay with Harry while looking for new flats."
"Interesting. The same breath you speak about the right woman, you mention her. Shall I take the bait? Romance her? Take her to bed? Five-star restaurants and buy her lacy knickers… oh, actually I quite like the idea of her tied up and begging on my bed."
Remus rolled his eyes and huffed. "Sirius, don't make her uncomfortable. She is a great woman and far superior to your usual standards."
"I do have this wicked fantasy about shagging like they do in that video. I am hungry like the wolf," Sirius encouraged another groan from Remus with his comment.
"Padfoot, I'll go with my better judgment and beat the sense into you," Remus warned him which made the other man nod.
"Alright, I'll behave, Moony. Despite the fact that I would likely win in a brawl, I will still concede under the terms that you grow some bollocks and ask her out to dinner. Preferably a right good shag after so I can watch." Sirius announced as he set a plate in front of Remus.
"No, no and equal parts no. We have talked about this. I refuse to expose someone so young and intelligent to our inner workings. It would be over before it was started, Sirius. I can't give her what she would need, and we both know that."
Sirius snorted and shook his head. "We didn't go all the way to fucking New York so you would die lonely, Moony. You're healthy now so shut your gob and do something for yourself."
"What would convince you that I'm satisfied?" Remus questioned with a sigh.
"If you shagged her, anyone. I don't even care if it's a bloke and you're announcing you've been a poof for the last two lifetimes. Just do something. God did not give you a massive cock to waste on wanking to porn when you think everyone's asleep. I'm not, it's sad, and you need to get laid."
Remus huffed and stabbed at his plate. "Fine, we will go out this weekend if it'll shut you up."
"Thank god for petty favors," Sirius grumbled and flopped down with his meal next to him. "For the record, I'm still going to make passes at our curly-haired fairy. I've full intentions of getting her into my sheets eventually."
Remus patted his shoulder and shook his head. "Don't Sirius," he murmured and that caused the stormy-eyed man to frown. "She has this smell to her. Someone did something fairly wrong. A man. Just be careful please?"
Sirius's eyebrows climbed his forehead. "That obvious?"
"Yes, so just be gentle. I know you have it in you, but this is a girl you likely will want to befriend, not shag, okay?"
"Okay, Moony. I'll leave it be."
"That's a good mate. Thanks for dinner," Remus said and nudged him. "Wife."
"Remus, you are more woman than I ever will be. You don't open your legs, you eat chocolate, and you're obsessed with ugly sweaters. It is a match made in heaven if you can suck knob."
"Well, you're the man who licked Prong's arse cheek for a dare of one hundred pounds."
"I was pissed out of my mind, don't you dare bring that up," Sirius laughed shaking his head.
"I'll start my toast with that at your wedding," Remus retorted after swallowing a bite.
"Wanker," Sirius huffed.
Remus snorted and nodded, but the Marauders fell into their usual comfortable banter as the night wore on. Life was very much like that year after, but something changed. Remus feared too much would too quickly if they weren't careful.
