Test Number Two

Remus drove through the streets of London, toward their destination. Although Hermione tried to remember each turn and every street, she soon gave it up as a bad job. She'd never remember how to get to the Leaky Cauldron this way. She said as much to Remus and he just laughed.

Still chuckling slightly, he said, "Hermione, you do realize that you'll probably never have to actually drive to the Leaky Cauldron?"

She huffed indignantly and just muttered, "But I'd still like to know how."

Eventually, Remus pulled into a parking lot near several department stores and restaurants. He parked away from most of the other cars and turned off the engine. He took the 20 pound notes out of his envelope and put them in his pocket and got out of the car.

Hermione was gathering her hand bag and was a little surprised when she looked up to open her car door and found that Remus had already done so! He stood there with a smile on his face as he offered his hand to help her out of the car. She smiled back and accepted his hand.

She had expected him to let go of her hand when she gained her feet, but he surprised her yet again and instead, he gently placed her hand in the crook of his arm. He shut her door and pulled out his wand. Quickly, he looked around to make sure there were no muggles around and did a quick Muggle Repelling charm on Sally.

He grinned lopsidedly at Hermione and confided, "It's better than any anti-theft device they've designed yet!"

Hermione's heart beat a little faster when he grinned that way and she could practically feel the heat of him through their clothes. Silently she berated herself, thinking, 'Oh, Merlin! I am such a wreck!'

But he's so handsome...

Yes, and I'm practically drooling over him...

Come on! It's not like you're trying to snog him...

Girl, get it together. He's already found his mate and it's not you...

But all the books say they USUALLY only have one mate...

He doesn't feel anything for you...

But how do you KNOW?!

Just stop it, already and act like you're having a good time!

Fine.

Her internal debate lasted as long as it took them to reach the main street's sidewalk. Just as Remus was starting to think there was something wrong, she snapped herself out of it and gave him a brilliant smile. She decided she would just enjoy what time they did have together and she wouldn't worry about what they couldn't have.

She and Remus chatted about nothing in particular as he lead her to a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant. The sign above the door only read Restaurante, but just by that, Hermione knew that it would probably be Italian. Remus held the door open for her and she blushed as she walked past him and into the dimly lit restaurant.

She wasn't disappointed as the aromatic smells of garlic and basil assaulted her. She breathed deeply and smiled back at Remus as he followed her inside.

He offered his arm once again and said, "I hope Italian is alright."

Seeing her nod, he grinned and was about to say something else when he was cut off by a loud, "REMUS LUPIN! Is that you?!" The owner of the voice came into view and Hermione was immediately reminded of Mrs. Weasley. The rather rotund woman enveloped Remus in a hug that looked almost painful. "It IS you! I can't believe it!"

Just slightly out of breath, he returned her greeting, saying, "Hello, Rosa. How've you been?"

Just as abruptly as she had swooped down on him, she suddenly turned stern. She shook her finger at him and said in a heavy Italian accent, "Don't you 'Hello, Rosa' me! Where have you been? I haven't seen you in years and all of a sudden, here you are!"

Remus had the grace to look a bit ashamed. "I'm sorry, Rosa, a lot happened since I've last been here."

Rosa's face broke into a smile and she ushered them to a table. "Well, never mind, you're here now and you can tell me about it while you eat!"

Chuckling, he introduced Hermione to the flamboyant woman. "Rosa, I'd like you to meet Hermione Granger. She is a former student of mine and my charge until she returns to Hogwarts."

Hermione's head snapped toward Remus when he said 'Hogwarts'.

At first, he didn't know why she had such a look of horror on her face, then he realized it was because Hermione assumed, correctly, that Rosa was a muggle. He had to fight to hold back the laughter that threatened to burst from him as he watched her slowly regain her composure and smile at Rosa. She made all the appropriate gestures and said all the right things, but Remus knew she was going to lay into him if he didn't explain things.

Looking around the restaurant, he noticed that they were the only patrons there. Evidently it was too late for the lunch crowd and to early for the dinner one. "Rosa," he said, "would you care to join us for lunch?"

Rosa looked a bit uncomfortable. "Reemy, I wouldn't want to impose on your date."

Hermione blushed scarlet and rushed to assure her, "It would be no imposition, Rosa, we're not on a date."

Rosa gave Remus a knowing smile and asked, "What can I get you two? When I bring it out, we can sit and chat for a while."

They both ordered a side salad with house dressing. Rosa explained to Hermione that it was like a cross between an Italian dressing and a vinaigrette. They also ordered lasagna and garlic bread. Rosa went to put it in the oven and get their salads and Hermione turned to Remus with her question burning in her eyes.

"I know you're wondering why I would mention Hogwarts to a muggle." He smiled when she nodded her head vigorously. "This was a Marauder hangout when we came to Muggle London." He looked down at his napkin and said quietly, "I haven't been here since Lilly and James..."

Hermione could hear the hurt in his voice and she reached across the table, offering him comfort with her hand on his. She let him know that he didn't need to finish his sentence. That she understood.

Rosa came back just as Remus was gaining control of his emotions and as she was refilling their drinks, she asked, "Now tell me everything that has happened since I saw you last. I never knew what happened to you boys. I at least expected Sirius to stop by every now and then."

Remus told her that James and Lilly had gotten married and had a son. Rosa was delighted and asked, laughingly, if he had his father's unruly hair. Remus said that yes, he did and when Hermione nodded emphatically, he explained that Hermione was one of Harry's best friends.

Rosa's happy mood wasn't to last much longer. Remus told her that soon after Harry was born, Lilly and James had to go into hiding because they were being targeted by the Death Eaters. Rosa gasped when he told her that Peter had betrayed them and she had to brush tears from her eyes as he told about how James and Lilly had fallen, but Harry had lived. She looked positively livid when he told her how Sirius had been blamed.

"Poor Sirius." she said when Remus told her how he'd been imprisoned for twelve years without a trial.

"But he finally broke out!" Remus told her about Harry's third year and how he finally learned the truth. The emotions were written on Rosa's face when he told her about what happened in the Department of Mysteries. Even Hermione had to wipe her eyes as she relived that horrible day. Finally, Rosa had to excuse herself before she completely broke down.

Before she went, Remus said, "I'm sorry I haven't been around these last few years." He looked down at his plate and continued quietly, saying, "This place holds so many memories for me."

Rosa squeezed his shoulder before she walked away, still drying her eyes.

Hermione and Remus finished their meal in silence and when they left, Rosa came out once more and hugged Remus, though not as jovially as before. There seemed to be more lines on her face and she seemed to have aged twelve years in the short time since they'd come in.

"You come back now, both of you." She smiled warmly at Hermione.

They both smiled at her and Promised that they would be back.

When Remus and Hermione got to the Telephone Booth that was the street entrance to the Ministry of Magic, their moods had improved considerably and they were once again joking and laughing as they both got into the booth.

It wasn't as tight a squeeze as it had been over a year ago, but they both felt as if they were too close for comfort. Hermione watched as Remus entered the correct number combination. The same voice from before told them to state their names and their business with the Ministry of Magic.

"Hermione Granger and Remus Lupin. We're here so Hermione can take her apparation test." Remus spoke clearly into the receiver. When he was done, two badges appeared in the coin return slot. Each had their names on it and Hermione's designated her as 'Apparation License Testee', while Remus's labeled him as 'Escort of Hermione Granger'. They attached the tags to the front of their shirts as the Telephone Booth sunk below the streets of London.

It was much as Hermione remembered it. The statues in the fountain had either been replaced or repaired magically because they looked like they did when the rescue group had first seen it. There were people rushing everywhere this time, and every now and then, one of the fire places that lined the room would flare up with green flames and a witch or wizard would step out, dust themselves off and continue on their way.

Hermione and Remus handed over their wands to the bored looking Ministry Official at the Wand Check desk. He gave Remus a slip of paper and told him that when they were ready to leave, to just show him or whoever was at the desk his slip and his wand would be returned to him. Hermione was allowed to keep her wand, as she would need it for her test.

They made their way to the lifts at one end of the atrium and, noticing a map of the building, they looked for The Department for Magical Transportation. Seeing that it was on the fourth floor, they entered the lift and waited for their floor to be called. It wasn't a long ride, but it could have been shorter. They stopped at every floor either to let people or paper airplanes on or off.

Finally, they reached their destination. For the second time that day, Hermione took a number and was told to wait in the waiting area for the next available test giver. Luckily, it was a Tuesday and Hermione didn't have to wait as long as she might have. After only thirty or so minutes of waiting, a middle aged witch with streaks of silver streaked through her jet black hair called Hermione to take her test. Remus wished her luck and she was taken to the testing area.

In contrast to her earlier driver's test, this was a less harrowing experience. There was no written test, only a few questions she had to answer verbally. Then they jumped right to the practical examination. The lady had Hermione apparate about five feet to one side. Then she told her to take her on a side-along apparation to the other side of the room. The whole test only took about twenty minutes.

When the tester gave her a piece of paper and a small card, saying, "Congratulations, Dear", she just looked at her blankly for a minute.

She laughed in disbelief. "That's it? That's all there is to it?"

"Yes, of course." The dark haired lady looked at Hermione quizzically. "What did you expect, Dear? A written exam and a more rigorous practical?"

Hermione could see that the woman was holding in her mirth. "Well, you see," she said, "I took my driver's test this morning."

"Ah." She said, knowingly. "Yes, yes. The Muggles are a bit more cautious than we are." She paused, as if thinking for a minute. "But then again, automobile technology is still fairly new. Witches and Wizards have been apparating for at least one thousand years."

Hermione thanked her and went back to Remus, showing him her new apparation license and the certificate that went with it.

"I knew you could do it!" He said, grinning widely. "Now we can get on with the rest of the day! No more sitting in uncomfortable chairs for me!"

Hermione laughed at his antics as they made their way back to the atrium to retrieve Remus's wand. He suggested that they apparate to Diagon Alley's apparation point and in a blink, they were gone.

Authors Note:

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone that put me on their story watch lists or checked back periodically to see if I'd updated. It means a lot to me that you were willing to keep an eye out on a story that had seemingly been abandoned. So thank you for your faith in me and for actually wanting to read this story. This story hasn't been abandoned in any way shape or form.

Second, since the last book came out (yes I got it, yes I waited in line, and yes I called in sick the next day to read it! It only took me 12 hours though.) this story is so AU its not even funny! Evidently, my characters are going to be out of character too. Sigh Oh, well. No, I'm not going to tell you why its AU... that would just spoil it for everyone. If you haven't read DH yet, go do it before you read anymore fanfic. It's a fast read, I promise.

For those of you who did read it, can anyone tell me what Hermione's middle name is? If you caught that too, give yourself a box of Every Flavor Beans... or if you don't like ear wax, dirt or pepper flavored jelly beans, you can have a chocolate frog... they're safer anyway.

Can you believe this is the second chapter this week!!! Not to mention that tweaking of Secrets Revealed (formerly The Way That It Was). I know I said I would finish the last chapter in this one... and I know it still doesn't seem finished... Next time, Hermione and Remus go shopping in Diagon Alley. See?! It's the Stay Puffed Effect! Everybody RUN!

OR

Read and Review!

Thanks again,

AF Marauder