Gryffindor trounced Slytherin in the Quidditch match Saturday morning. The scarlet-robed players outhustled their opposition in every way from the first whistle signaling the start of the match to the point when Ginny Weasley finally caught sight of the elusive Snitch. The Gryffindor Seeker chased after the golden blur, speeding toward the section of the stands where most of the teachers sat. She flew dangerously close to the professors beneath her before pulling up again, the fluttering silver wings of the Snitch peeking out of the fist she triumphantly raised into the air.

The jubilant cries of victory from the Gryffindors were joined by the tickled cheers from the other houses, amused to have seen their professors diving clear of Ginny's path in alarm. Remus and most of his colleagues applauded good-humoredly along with their students — even McGonagall cracked a smile — but a couple of professors, including Professor Avila beside him, looked none too pleased by Ginny's daring capture.

The Gryffindor Quidditch team, with their Seeker atop their shoulders and fellow members of their house surrounding them, boisterously made their way off the pitch and toward the castle. As their Head of House, Remus hoped their celebrations didn't get out of hand. He knew, however, that as long as Hermione was with them he didn't have to worry. She'd undoubtedly keep their celebrations in check.

He looked for her distinctive mane of curly brown hair in the throng of students ahead of him, but he didn't see her anywhere. He hadn't spotted her in the stands earlier either. Had she even attended the match? She must have. The whole school was out here.

Remus followed the Gryffindors into the castle, but their paths diverged as he headed toward his office. He'd nearly reached it when the cackling and whooping Peeves came hurtling toward him in the corridor, a book bag dangling from his hand. Only when Peeves passed him by did Remus realize it wasn't just anybody's book bag — it was Hermione's.

A second later, the harassed-looking Head Girl came running up the corridor. She pointed her wand at Peeves who swerved to avoid her spell, dropping her bag as he did so. Books, parchment, quills, and ink spilled to the floor making Hermione groan in frustration and Peeves squeal with delight. That delight promptly turned into pain and protest, however, when Remus drew his wand and blasted the poltergeist away from the scene before he could do any more damage.

Hermione wearily knelt down on the floor to gather her scattered belongings, and Remus hurried forward to help her.

"Thank you," she said as he passed over a few of her books. She stuffed them into her bag while he cleaned up the mess of her spilled ink, and then they both reached for the quill lying between them at the same time.

Before either could grasp it, though, Peeves returned, swooping down toward them and blowing a loud raspberry in their faces. He started to soar away again to evade Remus and Hermione's curses, but then he suddenly came to an abrupt halt, his eyes going round as he stared down at the pair of them. Tilting his head to the side, Peeves looked curiously between one and the other.

"Moony…and Frizzy…" A cheeky grin spread across the poltergeist's face and he chortled with glee. "Kissy kissssyyyyyyy! Ha ha ha!"

Remus froze, then glanced at Hermione, whose face had gone pink. Avoiding his gaze, she quickly ducked down again and continued gathering her things. Peeves, meanwhile, did cartwheels through the air before shooting away down the corridor, his shrieks of laughter echoing off the walls. Remus stared after him, wondering what that was all about. Then he shook his head. There probably was no rhyme or reason — it was just Peeves being Peeves.

Remus turned back to Hermione to help her collect the rest of her things. He saw her quill still lying on the floor beside him. As he picked it up, he was reminded of another time, a few years back during his first teaching stint at Hogwarts, when Hermione's books had fallen out of her bag at the end of his class and he'd returned the quill that had tumbled over to his desk. And just like then he looked at Hermione now and was troubled by the sadness tainting her features, a sadness he'd caught glimpses of more than once over the last few days.

"Are you all right?" he asked her as he handed over her quill.

"Yeah. Peeves was just being Peeves," she sighed, echoing his earlier thoughts. She heaved her bag up over her shoulder and got to her feet. Remus followed suit, becoming more concerned as he took a closer look at her and noticed her slightly swollen, red-rimmed eyes.

"No, I mean, is everything all right with you?"

As if realizing how she must look, she self-consciously ran a hand through her hair and lowered her gaze. "I'm just tired. I didn't get much sleep last night. I was studying late."

Studying or crying? He searched her face, sure she was lying to him. "Where are you off to?"

"The library."

"I thought you'd be in the common room celebrating the big win with the rest of the Gryffindors."

"We won? That's great."

"You weren't at the match?"

"Er, no, I was catching up on some homework."

No wonder he hadn't spotted her in the stands. His worry grew.

"I really should get going," she said, starting past him. "I still have a lot of studying to do."

"Hermione, are you sure everything's all right?" he asked again, making her pause.

"Yeah. Everything's fine." Her eyes told a different story, but she muttered "excuse me" and swiftly continued past him.

"Wait — your homework," he said on impulse, making her stop reluctantly once more. He didn't feel right just letting her walk off alone like this when, despite what she said, she'd obviously been crying. "I wanted to have a word with you about the essay you turned in this week."

"Did I do something wrong?"

"I think you may have misinterpreted something I said in lecture. We could go over it in my office now if you like. It shouldn't take long."

She hesitated but then gave him a small nod.

As they walked the short distance to his office, Remus glanced over at the silent and pensive Hermione, wishing she would talk to him, wishing things could be like they were before between them. But for the past couple of weeks she'd been distant and awkward whenever she was around him. At first he'd thought it was because of her boggart, but now he suspected it was something else that was affecting her. He just wished he knew what it was so then maybe he could help her.

In his office, he quickly found Hermione's essay amongst the others on his desk and handed it over to her, explaining where she'd gone wrong. She read through the section he pointed out.

"Oh, I see what I did… But you gave me full marks." She shot him a questioning look.

"You were, as always, very thorough in your research for this assignment. You added in more information than what was required and the bit you got mixed up on was part of that extra information. I just wanted to make sure you understood that concept because it'll likely come up on a later exam."

"I understand," she said and began reading more of her essay, perhaps checking if any other part of it was below her impossibly high standard. "I was probably just a bit distracted when I wrote this."

"I've noticed you have been a bit preoccupied in class lately." Preoccupied and subdued. He hadn't seen her usual enthusiasm during lessons, and he'd missed the brightness in her eyes and smile these last two weeks. Taking this opportunity to try once more to figure out what was upsetting her, he said, "Hermione, if there's something that's troubling you… if you want to talk… I could make us some tea."

Her eyes went still on her essay. Then she slowly lowered the parchment and turned her gaze to his. Sadness tainted her features once again as she looked at him long and hard, but this time she didn't try to pretend it wasn't present when she replied.

"Thank you, Remus. Really. But this isn't about a school-related matter. It's…personal."

"Whatever it is, I'm here if you want to talk."

The invitation seemed to cause her an intense internal struggle, but he could see in her eyes she wanted to speak.

"Please, Hermione, sit down. I'll make some tea."

Without waiting for a response, he began rummaging around for his kettle even though he half expected Hermione to flee from the room while his back was turned. But when he turned around again, she was, as he'd hoped, sitting in the chair before his desk.

Moments later, he set down a steaming cup before her and took a seat across from her with his own mug.

He waited patiently as she stirred sugar into her tea, her gaze downcast, careful not to look at him. Then, after she'd taken a sip and fiddled with her spoon a bit, she finally began to speak.

"Something has been troubling me," she said quietly, tentatively. "But it's… well… it's boy trouble."

His eyebrows rose. He hadn't expected that to be the issue at all. It hadn't even occurred to him that that could be it, and it was his turn to fidget now because this was definitely not his area of expertise.

Hermione glanced up at him, looking uncertain, and though he wasn't exactly comfortable with this subject, he couldn't turn her away now that she'd decided to confide in him. So he did his best to look unfazed and asked, "What's the problem?"

Again, she took some time to answer, and when she did, she did so hesitantly and continued to avoid his eyes, focusing instead on the cup she cradled in her hands.

"There's this guy I really like." Remus tensed, his mug raised halfway to his lips. "We used to date," she continued softly, "but things ended between us recently. And it's my fault. I made some mistakes and messed things up, and now I'm afraid we'll never get back together."

"Who's the guy? Is he a Gryffindor?" Remus asked before he could stop himself. Why on earth did it matter who the guy was?

She glanced at him guardedly. "He's…not a student here. He's a bit older than me."

Remus put his mug back down on his desk without taking a drink, wondering who this guy could be. Then he pushed those thoughts aside, reminding himself it wasn't important and it wasn't any of his business either.

"Have you talked to him about what happened, about these mistakes you say you've made?"

She shook her head, a hint of panic in her expression. "No, I couldn't. I'm afraid he wouldn't understand what happened, why I did what I did… I'm afraid he wouldn't forgive me."

What mistakes had she committed to make her feel so guilty? Certainly she couldn't have done anything too bad. This was Hermione after all. "If this guy cares for you, then surely he'd give you a chance—"

"Would you?" She looked into his eyes directly now, her own almost pleading him. "I mean, if the person you were with did something you didn't agree with but her intentions weren't bad, would you forgive her?"

Her question, which he thought was a rather personal one, took him aback. Still, he considered the vague, hypothetical scenario and answered as honestly as he could. "I suppose it depends on the situation and the reasons behind her actions, but I think I'd forgive her if she were someone I really cared about."

"That's the thing," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "I'm afraid he doesn't care for me anymore. And he doesn't even realize I have feelings for him now, like I did in the past…"

"Hermione, I think you should talk to this guy and tell him how you feel."

"But… I'm afraid…"

Her voice broke, and something inside Remus seemed to as well. The full extent of her distress was undisguised now, in her tone and in her expression, and it afflicted him deeply. He hardly knew what he said next as he struggled to remain calm amid his own distress at the sight of her eyes beginning to glitter with tears.

"Sometimes you need to let go of your fears and take a risk in order to be happy. Make yourself vulnerable. If you've only recently broken up, there's a good chance he still has feelings for you. Maybe he's just afraid of getting hurt, too."

"But what if he doesn't? What if he doesn't feel anything for me anymore?"

"You won't know unless you talk with him. I think that's the best way to work things out."

"But what if we can't? What if he doesn't want me anywhere near him after what I did?"

"Then it'd be entirely his loss, Hermione." And he meant it. Hermione was a special girl — incredibly brave, clever, and driven, and beautiful, one of the most kindhearted and compassionate people he'd ever met — the kind of girl this guy would be a fool to let go.

But his words only seemed to bring her more anguish. The tears brimming her eyes spilled over her lashes. "No, it'd be mine."

She stood up in a hurry and Remus, emotions in disarray, mirrored her movement. He caught her arm just before she reached the door. "Hermione…"

She slowly faced him, slowly raised her gaze to meet his, and looking into her eyes he could somehow feel her sorrow acutely, as if it were his own. He couldn't think of what to say, what to do.

She pulled away from him, out the door, and he stood there rooted to the spot, wrestling with feelings he didn't quite understand.

Hermione blundered towards her dorm, fresh guilt eating away at her conscience from her latest conversation with Remus. Why had she talked to him about all of that, about them? What had she been thinking?

As she approached the Head Girl's dormitory, she saw Ginny waiting for her in the corridor outside.

"Where have you been, Hermione?" she demanded. "I really needed you earlier and — what's wrong?" Her expression quickly changed from one of frustration to one of concern.

Hermione shook her head, sobbing, and stumbled into her dorm. An alarmed Ginny followed after her.

"Hermione, what's going on?"

"Remus," she whispered.

"Remus? Has — has something happened to him?"

"Ginny…" Hermione sank down onto the sofa, pulling her friend down with her. "I — I need to t-tell you something…"

"What, Hermione? What is it?"

Hermione tried to take deep breaths, tried to calm herself enough to speak intelligibly. She hadn't planned on telling anybody about the magic rose and her time traveling experience, about what had happened between her and Remus in the past, but she couldn't deal with this on her own any longer. She couldn't hold it in anymore. She needed to tell somebody, she had to.

So she did. She told Ginny everything. She told her about Remus giving her the rose at Harry's birthday party, how she'd woken up in his arms twenty years in the past, how they'd quickly become friends despite their awkward first encounter. She told her all about their increasingly warm friendship, their kindling romance, their first kiss, and everything that followed. Ginny listened incredulously the whole while, her eyes ever-widening, her jaw dropping and hand clapping to her mouth when Hermione described her last night with the teenage Remus. And when Hermione at last finished recounting her tale, both girls had tears in their eyes.

"Your jumper," Ginny whispered through her fingers after a long, stunned silence. "The morning after Harry's birthday, you were wearing that jumper… It was his?"

Hermione nodded.

"Merlin's beard… I knew something was up with you that morning, but I didn't… Why didn't you tell me?"

"I don't know. I just — I couldn't. I'm sorry."

"Hermione…" Ginny wrapped her arms around her, hugging her tightly. "I'm sorry. I should have realized… Oh, but it all makes sense now. Oh, no—" She pulled back, looking at Hermione apologetically. "What I said about Lupin and Tonks in the Three Broomsticks—"

"It's all right, Ginny. You were right. I know there's a big age difference—"

"No, Hermione. If you guys love each other, then age shouldn't matter! It's just a number."

"But he doesn't love me. He doesn't even know we were ever together! His feelings for me disappeared along with his memories and there's no way we can be together now, not with the way things are here."

"You don't think it's possible? You don't think he might have feelings for you now?"

Hermione miserably replied in the negative.

"Are you sure? He hasn't said or done anything at all that's made you think he might?"

"No. Well… I don't know!" Hermione threw her arms up in frustration. "Most of the time I think he doesn't, but sometimes… sometimes there are moments when it feels like it did back then between us."

"Then there's a possibility," Ginny told her bracingly. "Like Dumbledore said when you were discussing the rose: Lupin's heart is the same regardless of the time or circumstances."

Hermione shook her head, not knowing what to think anymore.

"May I see the rose?" Ginny asked tentatively.

Hermione led her friend to her bedroom and handed her the magic rose. Ginny held it gingerly as she examined it, then brought the flower to her face.

"What does it smell like to you?" Hermione asked.

"It just smells like a rose." Ginny studied it a few moments longer before a look of comprehension crossed her face. "This is the rose I teased you about on your birthday, isn't it? Lupin was the one who gave it to you..." She looked up at Hermione. "Is that…?"

Hermione nodded. She had taken out of her nightstand drawer the necklace Remus had given her for Christmas and the photograph Lily had taken of them sitting by the fireplace. Ginny silently mouthed the words "be silently drawn" as she examined the necklace, and once she'd had a good long look at the moving photograph, she turned to her friend and said breathlessly, "Wow, Hermione."

"It's been so hard, Ginny, to go from that to not being able to kiss him or hold his hand or even stand too close… Why does he have to be my teacher? He'd never be able to look at me like that now!"

"Have you thought about showing this to him? Have you considered telling him about what happened between you in the past?"

"No, no, I couldn't…" she said in panic and told Ginny about her terrible encounter with the boggart-Remus.

"But that was just a boggart, Hermione. It knew your worst fear and it magnified it, but that doesn't mean the real Lupin would react that way."

"But he could. And he'd have a right to. I'm afraid I've ruined everything, Ginny. I — I don't know what to do anymore." Hermione slumped down onto her bed, her head in her hands.

"Dumbledore said he believed that Lupin had unacknowledged feelings for you in this time," Ginny said thoughtfully. "Well, you'll just have to make him acknowledge them now."

Hermione peered up at her friend bleakly. "And how am I supposed to do that?" It sounded so simple, but much easier said than done.

Ginny sat on the bed facing her. "To begin with, I think you should stop beating yourself up over what's already happened because you can't change any of that. And I think you should stop focusing on what might keep you guys apart. Think about what brought you together in the first place. And get closer to him. Stop acting like there are any barriers between you. I think that's the only way he'll be able to look past them too."

Hermione slowly straightened up, considering her friend's suggestions. "That makes sense."

Ginny passed her back the rose. "Hermione, I think the fact that this rose exists, that it's still alive after all this time and after everything that's happened, it means something. You shouldn't give up. The magic is still there."

Hermione breathed in the rose's comforting scent, felt the hum of its energy tickle her fingers. It was still alive, which meant the magic still existed…

Ginny's words gave her hope that maybe, just maybe there was a possibility with Remus after all.

A/N: Happier chapters are coming, I promise :)

As always, thank you for reading and thanks so much for your lovely reviews!