Hermione was glad Ginny had convinced her to go to Hogsmeade Saturday because for the first time in what felt like a long time she found herself genuinely smiling. Harry and Ron had surprised them by showing up at the Three Broomsticks, and now they, along with Neville and Luna, were gathered around a table, drinking butterbeer and laughing and sharing their post-graduation plans.

Ginny was telling them all about the scout that was coming to watch her play at the final Quidditch match. "Can you believe it? Who knows, maybe I'll be training with the pros this summer. I can't wait for graduation."

"I'm very excited too," Luna said cheerily. "I'm leaving the day after graduation to go on an expedition with my father. He's hoping to discover a new magical creature as a graduation gift to me."

Neville wasn't as excited as the girls. When asked about his plans for the summer, he said, "I haven't looked that far ahead yet. I've mainly been concentrating on studying so I can pass all my N.E.W.T.s. But eventually I think I'd like to teach Herbology. Professor Sprout says she's retiring soon, so I thought maybe I could take over here at Hogwarts."

"You'll make a fine teacher, Neville," Hermione said with a smile.

"You could be a teacher too if you wanted," he told her. "You'd be excellent. You're really good in Defense Club."

"Nah, she won't be a teacher," Ron chimed in, shaking his head. "Hermione's going to join the Ministry and save the world, one house-elf at a time."

"And then she'll take over the world as Minister for Magic," Harry said with a grin.

Ginny laughed. "Wow, Hermione, world domination! Your future is looking bright."

Hermione's smile was forced now. Lately, she'd been contemplating her future with much less certainty and enthusiasm than she once had.

"I'm going to order another butterbeer," she said. "Anybody else want anything?"

Harry followed her when she headed toward the bar. Alone for the first time today, he asked her, "So how are things going? You know, with you and Remus."

"Not so great," she replied, trying to keep the heaviness she felt in her heart out of her voice. "After he found out what happened between us in the past . . . we didn't speak for a while. He — he reacted the way I feared he would. But I suppose things have gotten a little better between us recently. We're talking again."

It was true that they were talking again, but calling this an improvement was a bit of a stretch because they only spoke to each other when absolutely necessary, like when it came to Defense Club or academic matters. Overall, Remus was as distant with her as ever.

"Listen, Hermione," Harry began tentatively, "I was thinking about talking to Remus. Maybe I could —"

"No. Please don't talk to him about me, Harry. I don't think that would help. I think it'd just make him more uncomfortable."

"But he's being stupid, Hermione."

"He's not. He's just . . ."

"Being stupid."

"It's complicated, Harry. But things really are getting better between us. I just hope with a little more time we can at least be friends again."

Harry didn't press the matter further as the pair loaded up on drinks and rejoined their friends.

Later that afternoon, after Harry and Ron had gone, Hermione and Ginny decided to visit Honeydukes before they returned to Hogwarts. Hermione wandered around the shop, searching for something to take home to her parents next week for the Easter holiday. She was looking through some of the caramel treats when she heard a woman's voice from nearby utter Remus's name. She paused to listen.

"It would be wonderful if things worked out between you two," the witch said. "He's such a nice man."

"Indeed," agreed a second woman's voice. Hermione's eyes widened when she realized who it belonged to — Vivienne. She'd completely forgotten that she worked here. "I'm actually planning on going up to the castle and surprising him after I finish up here, Auntie."

"Oh, that's lovely, dear," the other witch replied.

That was not lovely. That was far from being lovely.

After Vivienne's aunt went on her way, Hermione stepped into the next aisle behind Vivienne, a feeling of intense displeasure and unfamiliar ferocity overwhelming her as she took in the sight of the curvy blonde woman with the perfect hair, and said to her, "You're wasting your time."

Vivienne looked over her shoulder, a bored expression on her face. "Excuse me?"

"You're wasting your time with Remus. He doesn't want anything to do with you."

Vivienne shoved the sweets in her hand carelessly onto the shelf before spinning around to face Hermione. "Who are you? No, wait — I remember. You're one of his students, aren't you? Shouldn't you be referring to him as 'Professor Lupin'?"

"What I call him is none of your concern. And neither is he."

Vivienne arched an eyebrow. "I beg to differ on that."

"Stay away from him," Hermione blurted.

"Why should I?"

"Because he doesn't want to get involved with you."

"And why are you getting involved in your professor's personal life?"

"Because he's — he's a friend of mine."

Vivienne looked Hermione up and down with piqued interest. "Don't tell me that you and Remus . . ." Her eyebrows raised high over her casually assessing eyes. "Huh. I never would have imagined Remus to be the type to abuse his authority like that."

"He isn't abusing his authority!" Hermione said, horrified at the insinuation.

"Of course he's not," Vivienne replied coolly. "He wouldn't be interested in a little schoolgirl like you."

"Well, he despises women like you!"

Vivienne's eyes flashed. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"You know full well what I mean. Women like you who only care about how the full moon affects him — he hates it."

"Is that what he told you?" Vivienne stepped closer and continued in a quieter, taunting tone. "Because every time we're together I get the distinct impression that Remus can't get enough of a woman like me. He seems to thoroughly enjoy finally being with someone who understands his true nature and isn't afraid to give him what he needs. You do know what I mean, don't you?"

Hermione didn't answer. She felt sick.

Vivienne flashed a nasty smile and went on, "Perhaps not. No doubt you've never been with a werewolf before." She looked her over once again, disdainfully, and added, "You've probably never even been with a man. Your inexperience is painfully obvious. You're just a little girl and what Remus wants is a woman."

"Hermione?" Ginny said, appearing around the corner. "There you are! Ready to go?"

Hermione was more than eager to leave. She managed to throw Vivienne a contemptuous look before stalking off with Ginny, but once she was out of Vivienne's sight her eyes burned with tears.

"I'll wait for you outside," she murmured to Ginny and hurried out of the shop while her friend paid for her sweets.

When Ginny joined her a minute later she asked worriedly, "What's wrong? What happened? Who was that woman?"

With a hand shaking slightly with her fury at that hateful witch, Hermione brushed away her tears. "Vivienne."

"That's Vivienne?" Ginny said in surprise. "Oh. Well. What — what did she say to you?"

Hermione told her and Ginny shook her head.

"Don't listen to her, Hermione. She's just an awful, vile woman. Don't believe a word she said."

"But she's right, Ginny — I am just a little schoolgirl! I should have graduated already, but I didn't, and I'm still here at Hogwarts, and even if Remus didn't hate me for what I did in the past, he still w-wouldn't —"

"Stop, Hermione. Remus doesn't hate you. It's obvious that he's as unhappy as you are with this estrangement between you two, it's just — well, you being his student does complicate matters, but not for long — you'll be graduating in a couple of months, remember? And you're not a little girl. Vivienne is just jealous. Don't let what she said get to you. Remus will come around. He's just a little . . . conflicted right now."

"It's the dubite," Hermione said, a memory rushing back to her at Ginny's words.

"What?"

"On the train ride to Hogwarts at the beginning of the year . . . Luna said she thought Remus might not come back to teach because he had a dubite — a creature that latches itself onto a person's chest, right over his heart, and denies him from finding peace and happiness. She said these creatures are especially attracted to werewolves because of their dual nature, and they keep them in a conflicted state as long as they're latched to them."

"So you believe in this dubite thing?" Ginny said, looking skeptical. "Do you remember how Luna said to get rid of them?"

"A special potion, I think. But no, of course dubites aren't real creatures. Remus's dubite is his lycanthropy."

She knew his affliction was the root of the problem, the underlying reason for all his hesitance. But there was no special potion, no cure for lycanthropy, and no way to stop the full moon from appearing and awakening the wolf inside he loathed and feared so much.

But then an idea struck her. Maybe there was a way. . . .

She played around with the idea in her mind that night while keeping an eye on the Marauder's Map to make sure that Vivienne hadn't dared come to the castle as she'd told her aunt she would. Then, over the next few days, Hermione worked to bring her idea to life.

Finally, on Wednesday evening, after testing her idea one last time, Hermione decided it was time to show Remus.

On Wednesday evening, Remus found himself in the atmospheric and stiflingly warm Divination classroom. He didn't know exactly how it had happened. He'd been distracted at dinner, wondering where the absent Hermione was, and had unwittingly accepted Sybill Trelawney's offer to crystal gaze for him. When he realized what he'd agreed to, he hadn't been able to think of a way to backtrack fast enough, so now he sat in a chintz armchair across from Trelawney as she discerned his future.

He wondered what 'prediction' his colleague was brewing up. No doubt some mysterious and catastrophic event, perhaps his death. He knew morbid premonitions were her forte.

In her most impressive misty voice, Trelawney revealed the images and symbols she saw in the crystal ball.

"What does that mean?" he asked, politely playing along.

"Passion."

"I'm sorry?" he said, taken aback.

"Romance is looming near. I see a witch . . . brunette . . . intelligent . . . living here at Hogwarts. Hmmm . . . could she be —?"

"No." Remus stood up in a hurry.

Trelawney blinked at him.

"Er, I mean to say, I just remembered I — I have something I need to go do. Right now." Not the most sophisticated excuse he could have given, but it would have to do. "Thank you for the reading."

"Don't you want to know who the woman is?" Trelawney asked, losing the misty quality in her voice and breaking her mystique.

"I'd rather not."

"Well, she looks an awful lot like my dear friend Olivia," she told him anyway.

Remus paused on his way to the door, glancing back at her in surprise. "Professor Avila?" Trelawney nodded and he relaxed. "Good evening, Sybill."

With a sigh of relief, he descended from the Divination classroom, immensely grateful that his colleague was not a particularly gifted Seer and had not seen Hermione in her crystal ball.

As for himself, he saw Hermione everywhere. More often, though, she appeared to him only in his mind rather than in actuality, for every incident that occurred these days triggered a memory of his time with her in the past, and every corner of the castle was connected to some experience he'd had with her. Everything was a cruel reminder of the incredible happiness he'd experienced for a fleeting time in his youth. It almost felt like it had been an entirely different life, a life that perhaps could have belonged to him in another time and in other circumstances, but a life that could never be his now.

Remus walked alone miserably along the seventh floor corridor that he had often strolled with Hermione once upon a time ago. She appeared in his mind's eye, striding towards him from the other end of the corridor. She would come and take his hand and they'd spend the rest of the evening together before he'd walk her to her dorm and kiss her goodnight, impatient for the next day to arrive so he could be with her again.

The distance between them was closing fast and Remus's step faltered. He suddenly realized that the vision before him wasn't a memory or a daydream. Hermione was really heading towards him. He quickly schooled his features to conceal his rueful longing as she walked up to him.

"Remus — there's something in the Room of Requirement you need to see right away."

"What is it?" he asked in concern at the urgency in her tone.

"You need to see it for yourself. I'll show you where. Please — it's important."

Remus followed her the short distance to the Room of Requirement, wondering what was in there, if it was some danger.

Hermione bit her lip as she paused outside the door. Then she said, "You should know before we go inside that what you're about to see in there won't affect you."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see in a moment. Just remember that you won't be affected, all right?"

He nodded, bemused.

When she led him inside the Room of Requirement, they could have been stepping through the great oak front doors and out of the castle, for the room had transformed itself into the school grounds. He tread on soft earth and breathed in the brisk night air as he glanced around the familiar setting, wondering exactly what Hermione wanted to show him. Then his attention drifted upward, drawn by what was lighting the landscape before them — the full moon.

Terror gripped him.

"It won't affect you," Hermione quickly reminded him. "It's okay. I made sure it wouldn't influence you in here."

She was right. He wasn't experiencing any of the tremors or pain that usually accompanied his monthly transformations. He was still human, still Remus. He also remembered that it wasn't yet time for his transformation. The full moon was still over a week away. How, then, was the moon full tonight?

He peered up at the silver sphere shining above them, stunned by its early appearance and its lack of power over him. His shock turned to amazement when he realized Hermione must have made this so.

He looked over at her. "You — you did this?"

She nodded.

Remus stared at her, speechless, remembering how she'd once apologized for showing him an illustration of the full moon in a book she'd been flipping through and saying it was beautiful. He'd told her not to worry about it, that he thought the full moon beautiful as well but just wasn't able to appreciate it the way he used to.

But right now he could.

Warmth filled his heart at Hermione's gesture, and he turned away before she could see his rush of affection for her.

She followed him as he headed down toward the lake, the water rippling with the reflected silvery glow of the moon rising in the sky. He stood near the lake's edge, filled with complete awe as he beheld the spectacular sight before him. It had been over three decades since he'd been able to see the full moon in all its splendor through these human eyes, without pain or fear or dread clouding his estimation of this beauty in nature, of this magic.

He remembered the story his mother had told him when he was very young, a story he'd once repeated to Hermione in this room before a Defense Club meeting, about a boy who was afraid of the dark and the monsters that lurked in the night, waiting to prey on kids like him. The boy soon overcame his fear when his friend told him there was no need to be afraid because even though there was nothing but darkness sometimes the unfailing moon would gradually appear and lighten the gloom with its magical glow and protect them from the dangers of the night.

Before he'd been bitten Remus had believed the story, had believed that the moon was beautiful and magical, a beacon of hope and a reminder of the good even when the world went dark and filled with fear. He'd regarded the full moon in wonder as a small child, and he was able to admire it with that same innocence now.

And all thanks to Hermione.

He'd fallen in love with her twice in his life, and gazing at her now, her profile gorgeously illuminated by the full moon that she had rendered harmless for him, it was easy to understand why.

"Hermione . . ."

She turned to him and he wanted to speak, wanted to tell her how much he loved her for this, how much he loved her for everything she was, but his voice failed him.

So he moved instead.

In one swift stride he closed the distance between them, and in that heartbeat he could see the anticipation grow in her eyes, could hear the hitch in her breath, could feel the patter of her pulse as he wrapped his arm around her waist, his own starved heart jumping out of his chest as he pulled her into his embrace.

And like the first time he'd kissed her so long ago, he felt the magic spark as their lips met, a magic that ignited his soul, only this time it was even more powerful than before. And the familiar feel of her kiss, of that breathtaking contact, that special connection, drove him to fully forget his reservations. A sense of urgency stole over him and he kissed Hermione with hunger and deep sincerity, and he could feel in her kiss how much she'd been aching for him these past several months. He could feel just how much he'd been missing her too all this time, how strongly he'd been yearning for this moment to come.

Only when he needed to catch the breath she'd stolen from him did he pull away from her lips, but he held her close, not wanting to let her go, not wanting to break the magic still tingling everywhere their bodies touched. He gazed down at her, dazed and overjoyed — over the moon. Her chest was heaving like his own as she peered back up at him, her eyes glittering with the moonlight. He gently wiped away the tears that escaped them — happy tears, he was relieved to see, not like the ones he'd been causing her the last few weeks.

"Remus," she whispered, tightening her clutch on his shirt. "Please . . . tell me this isn't another dream."

He raised his eyebrows — another? Did that mean she'd dreamt of him before? He couldn't believe it. The girl he'd thought was a dream had dreamt about him.

"This isn't a dream," he assured her, stroking her cheek. She glanced down at her hands, unfurling her fingers and splaying them on his chest. But even though she was touching him, feeling his solid flesh, she still didn't look entirely convinced he was real. "If you like, I can pinch you to prove it."

She gave him a small, breathy chuckle. "I'd much rather you kiss me again."

Remus wondered what he'd ever done to deserve to have this girl in his arms, to hear her say those words and see her gaze at him the way she was. He softly pressed his lips to her cheek where another tear had fallen, gently kissing it away. Then he brushed his lips against hers and murmured, "I've dreamt of you too."

He felt her heart swell inside his chest. Then she crushed her lips to his, her arms sliding around his neck, and it had been too long since he'd been filled with such an invigorating joy as this. The part of himself that until recently he hadn't even known existed, the part that had died when Jean left and been forgotten along with his memories, perished for so many years, was resuscitated now. Her kiss was revitalizing him while awakening some of his deepest fears.

But he would disregard those fears tonight. The moon in the sky was shining a bright, magical light over the world around them, so he would kiss Hermione and lose himself in this beautiful bliss, and like in the story his mother had once told him, he'd bottle up the moonbeams and save them for the dark nights he knew were still to come.