Disclaimer: I disclaim!

A/N: Hehe, thanks for those who reviewed! Here's chapter 3, I hope you enjoy it. ^_^

~*~

Hermione groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. Then, for good measure, she rubbed her tired eyes and groaned some more. Why, why, why are these things never easy? she cried to whatever gods might be listening. Not to say she was expecting an answer, but when none came, she glared at the text in front of her, wondering if, if she glared at it hard and long enough, the letters would somehow shift around and for once tell her something she wanted to know. But the passage remained stubbornly unchanged, and in fact seemed to glare right back at her. At that moment, Hermione Granger was certain she was crazy.

"You drove me crazy," she told the book accusingly. She felt like it needed to know. "I could be out in the sun this very minute, enjoying the beautiful afternoon, yet here I am, cooped up in a dark, stuffy library reading you. You should be more grateful."

"Who should be more grateful?" asked a voice behind her.

Hermione yelped and whirled around, knocking over an uncapped inkbottle in the process. She glared up to a grinning Ron from her position on the floor behind the couch. He was kneeling on the sofa and leaning over the back of it, peering down at Hermione.

"The wild and brooding Scottish Laird McKibben, if you must know. He was just rescued by the buxom Lady Alice Pendleton, but refuses to admit it," she gritted out as she tried to clean up the inky mess with some scratch papers.

"Urgh, Merlin, you're reading that crap again? Oi, Harry!" Ron called over his shoulder to their friend who just came in. "Hermione's being unacceptably girly again. Make her stop!"

"Well, you asked," she retorted, rolling her eyes. "What're you two doing here, anyway? In the library?"

"Harry, I can't be certain, but is she being snippy with us?" Ron asked in an overly incredulous tone.

"Yes, Ron, I do believe she is," Harry sighed heavily, joining Ron on the sofa. "And here we were, offering to give her indispensable information...." he let his words hang.

"Too bad, really, she would have loved to hear it, seeing that it's, you know, indispensable," Ron replied, "We'll be going then, Hermione. I hope you have fun with your… book. Don't worry about us, we know when our company isn't wanted."

She was torn between laughing at the two's theatrics and bashing them in the head with 'A Gently Warrior'.

"Alright! You win, you drama queens," she growled as she stood up, arms crossed, "What information? And it better be worth that inkbottle, Ronald Weasley." When the two simply arched a brow at her expectantly, she gave them an extremely forced smile and barked out, "Please."

"Well, since you asked so nicely, Dumbledore just called an emergency Order meeting," Ron magnanimously revealed. "It's crazy out there right now."

"Yeah, people just rushing in and stuff. Some klutz even woke up that old hag's portrait, but Mrs. Weasley took care of that now," Harry further elaborated. "And, er, Tonks says hi, by the way," he added.

She was distracted by the thought of the metamorphagus stumbling on to Mrs. Black yet again. She wondered if she did it on purpose to annoy the nasty old witch? No, wait, that wasn't the point.

"An emergency Order meeting? Why? What happened?" she asked worriedly. What could have possibly alarmed Dumbledore enough to call out all the members of the Order, in broad daylight no less?

"As I doubt anyone will be forthcoming with information," Harry said in disgust, "Fred and George and Ginny are getting the extendible ears ready as we speak. They said it's new and improved."

"Yeah, and now we're just waiting for them to start so we could get on with our own, uh, data gathering," Ron delicately finished.

Hermione giggled. "Eavesdropping, Ron. It's called eavesdropping. Come on, they should be starting already—"

She was cut off when Mrs. Weasley burst into the library, looking more harried than usual. "Oh, thank Merlin you three are here!" She seemed to be juggling a million things in her arms. Hermione and Harry immediately rushed over to her to help her carry some of the stuff.

"Oh, thank you, Harry, Hermione, dear," she cried, "My goodness, it's such a terribly busy afternoon, it's pleasant to know some people are ready to lend a hand," she added, looking meaningfully to Ron.

"Is there anything we can help you with, Mrs. Weasley?" Hermione asked helpfully. She wasn't sure, but Ron might've muttered, "Speak for yourself." She discreetly elbowed him anyway.

"I'm so glad you asked, dear. As a matter of fact, there is one tiny, little thing. Could you perhaps help look after Remus just for a while? Full moon was last night, you know, and I'm afraid the poor man hasn't quite recovered from it yet," Mrs. Weasley clicked her tongue concernedly.

Hermione let out a gasp. How could she have forgotten! Now that she looked, she saw a bottle of antiseptic liquid and a few rolls of bandages among the things she carried. "Is—is he hurt really bad?"

"Oh no, dear, just a slight fever and a few scratches here and there. Mostly, he just sleeps, the poor thing. I need you to wake him up for supper, though, and for the medicine for the fever. They're in the kitchen. Do you think you think you could clean his cuts for me? It's just for a while, and the Order meeting—" she stopped herself abruptly.

"Of course, Mrs. Weasley, we'd be happy to. We'll take good care of him," Hermione quickly reassured her. Mrs. Weasley looked hassled enough without Hermione pestering her with her questions.

"Well, then, I leave him to your care, Hermione, Harry. You too, Ron," she said, looking relieved, and hurried out of the library. When Hermione turned to face Ron and Harry, she immediately frowned at the expression on their faces. "Oh no, you don't!"

"Come on, Hermione, please! You heard my mum, it's just a few cuts here and there. You don't really need me for that, do you?" Ron whined.

"And if we're going to be really honest about it, you're the only one Mrs. Weasley really trusted with this," Harry pointed out. "She only asked me 'cause she didn't want to hurt my feelings."

"Yeah, and we'll fill you in later!"

Between their combined wheedling and her concern for the recovering werewolf, she heaved a great sigh and finally nodded. "Fine, but it better be word for word. And you owe me big!"

She almost dropped the things she was holding when they enveloped her in bear hugs and whooped in her ear. She just smiled under their arms. Crazy boys, she thought.

~*~

Hermione crept as silently as she could across the small room to the bed in the corner, careful not to disturb the man sleeping in it. She sat on the chair that was already by the bed and quietly set the things she carried on the bedside table. She examined Remus' sleeping form, then winced at what she saw.

He looked like crap. There wasn't any other word for it, she thought. His face was very pale, which made the circles under his eyes stand out starkly. There was a shadow along his jaw, and his lank hair, wet with perspiration and a bit longer than it was the last time Hermione saw him, clung to his forehead in clumps. She was amused to see a small, sharp, pointed canine caught on his bottom lip, which was cracked and chapped and slightly bleeding.

She gasped as her eyes roamed to his chest. Someone had already removed his shirt and his blanket only came up to his waist, so Hermione could see the plethora of scars wending their way across his torso. She could see were the skin puckered, or was hollowed out, and how some scars overlapped with others, like intricate patterns on one of her mother's dyed sarongs. She didn't know if they were ugly, or beautiful, or perhaps both.

Her eyes shifted to the more recent injuries, which thankfully were really just scrapes and bruises scattered around. Deciding she already wasted enough time, she quickly set about dabbing at the cuts with the antiseptic and putting a bandage over the deeper ones. She grabbed an ointment from the table and smeared some of it on a particularly nasty-looking bruise, jumping slightly when the muscle beneath his skin twitched at the contact. She wondered how she was going to see to the wounds on his back.

She was leaning over him, about to set a magically self-cooling gel pad on his slightly burning forehead when Remus' eyes snapped open. She only had a second to note they were all black before she felt a hand snake around the back of her neck and tug her close, causing her to lose her balance and fall on top of him. She yelped slightly at the impact and struggled to push herself off him, but the hand held her tightly in place. She stilled when she felt his nose graze the curve of her ear, his breath hot on her cheek. She heard a low rumbling noise just before he buried his nose in her hair and breathed in.

Hermione was only able to keep the panic at bay with the thought that this was Remus, her friend, her mentor, and lately, her partner. She reminded herself that she trusted him, but it didn't keep her from wishing that Harry and Ron were here right now. Dredging up courage, she slowly lifted a hand to his face, stroking his cheeks, then his hair, murmuring quiet and comforting words until finally, after a lifetime—or was it just minutes?—his grip on her neck slackened and she was able to pull away. When she looked at his face, she saw he was asleep again as though nothing happened.

She sat heavily on the chair, shocked to numbness at what occurred. No amount of reading and researching could have prepared her for this side of Remus. How could she have been so naïve as to think the beast in him was a harmless creature, incapable of real damage? But what she just witnessed was no such thing. It was powerful and raw and untamed, only too capable of snapping her neck with a flick of a wrist.

It was dangerous.

So where did that leave her? Was she scared of him now? She shook her head. No, she would never be scared of him. The only difference between yesterday and this moment was that Hermione was now less ignorant about Remus. She now had an idea of what wildness lived inside him; she now had a deeper appreciation of what he had to struggle with every single day of his life.

And maybe, she'd be a better friend for it.

~*~

As Remus woke up, things came to him one at a time. His temporarily heightened sense of hearing caught the steady sound of quill against parchment. His nose could smell the scent of mushroom soup, and there was something cold on his forehead. As though suddenly reminded of its state, his body opened itself to pain. His muscles felt on fire, and his bones felt raw. Slowly, he opened his eyes.

He immediately recognized the girl who seemed to be writing something furiously on his desk. "Hermione?" He gingerly sat up and peeled off the cool object on his face. That's when he noticed that he was bare-chested. Oh.

She turned around at the sound of his voice, looked unsure for a fraction of a second, then flashed him a grin. "Oh good, I was just about to wake you, too." She went over to his and sat on the chair. "Mrs. Weasley asked me to look after you for awhile," she explained before he could ask.

He shook his head. "She worries too much. I'm fine, really." Not exactly, but it was nothing he wasn't already accustomed to.

She looked skeptical. "Sometimes, she worries just right," she replied with a little grin. "I was given instructions to see to it you finish your dinner," she informed him in a tone that brooked no argument.

"Yes, ma'am," he obediently agreed.

"And I still have to fix up your back," she pointed out cheerfully.

"Yes, ma'am," he said again, sighing in surrender.

"And you also have to drink your medicine," she added, clearly enjoying this.

"Yes, ma'am. But I'm afraid my stomach demands to have its dinner first." He reached for the tray on the bedside table, but Hermione beat him to it. Just as well, he thought. He doubted he could carry the entire thing without spilling anything, in his current state. She settled the tray carefully on his lap.

This was twice now that she had been there for him in his time of need, silently offering support and a grin that warded off the chill in his bones. "Thank you, Hermione. You really didn't have to do this, you know," he said sincerely.

She groaned and rubbed a hand over her face. "Are we going to have this conversation again?"

He let out a bark of laughter, before agreeing, "I suppose it is getting a bit redundant."

He finished his dinner quickly and obediently drank his medicine under the watchful eye of Hermione. When he asked her why it was so quiet, he frowned when she didn't answer immediately. "What's happened, Hermione?"

She sighed and shook her head. "I don't know myself, but Professor Dumbledore called an Order meeting this afternoon."

He almost choked on his own spit. "Pardon?"

"It seemed urgent, too," she added, deciding not to hold back.

Remus quickly scrambled out of bed, but he froze when he caught sight of himself in the mirror. He stared at the pale, thin man in front of him, hair wild and long, eyes still dark, scarred arms and body full of scratches and bruises. He shook his head in defeat. "I cannot go out like this. I can't let them see me like this."

Hermione led him back to his bed. "Come on, I'm sure they'll let you know everything later. I should take care of your back," she gently reminded him.

He sat on his bed and reluctantly turned around. He waited for her gasp, or any indication of shock at the horrendous sight of his back. But only soft touches came as Hermione's fingers went over every cut, every bruise with gentleness. Neither of them spoke; the only sound he could hear were Hermione's concerned murmurs, his hisses of discomfort, mumbled apologies and reassurances.

His stomach was full, and his wounds were being tended. In the comforting lull of silence, the waning beast in him rumbled in contentment.

~*~

A/N: I wish someone would tend to my back, it aches after typing for hours… ^_^; I guess, things between Hermione and Remus are starting to change a bit, eh? Hmm, I'm thinking of keeping their relationship on sort of a borderline state. I like to see how far I can push their friendship before it crosses over to that wonderful world of romance…tehe.

And as you may have noticed, no mention of old magic or the werewolf packs in this chapter. Sorry bout that, but I really felt that the Hermione/Remus moment was crucial to establish the strengthening camaraderie between them. Tell me your thoughts!

And always, thanks for reading.

Luff,

smells like citrus

PS: ladywolf93—yeah, I guess that's definitely one way of looking at it, thanks for pointing it out! ^_^

PSS: made some very recent changes, just minor ones. :)