In the Present

A HariPo fanfic

by mew-tsubaki

Note: I haven't finished To the Future and already I'm starting its second companion story. AGH! However, J.K. Rowling's characters are in good hands by now, so I hope everyone enjoys this Rena story. But to reach the present, one must glance at the past, where our story begins… READ & REVIEW!!!

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The Fourth Harvest (& the Fifteenth Wax)

That weekend was hell all over again for Remus. Nothing new happened, but signing the papers just reopened the wounds. Everything would be (and was) settled quickly, because Tonks had actually been planning the divorce for a while with the help of her parents.

All that was left was Remus's signature, which he numbly provided. He had skimmed over the fine print, but Tonks wasn't asking for anything save to be rid of him, so Remus complied. He cared for her enough that, if being separated from him would make her happy, then he would comply.

So he signed away, giving her ownership of basically the baby stuff, which he had a feeling she'd destroy anyway. Her parents packed up her things and took them to their home. Remus was a bachelor again.

He was alone in his house once more.

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That weekend was the end of something else as well. Neville took that Saturday off and had Luna meet him in Hogsmead.

Luna went, although a tad nervous. It was the first time she had seen him since March. She had kept busy with the paper so as to not talk to him about Remus –she still didn't know what to say, and he hadn't wanted to see her in a while, too. But Luna wondered what else him suddenly wanting to see her could mean.

She wracked her brain, trying to think of what else it could be, when Neville joined her. He sat down and caught his breath. "S-Sorry I'm late."

"It's no problem," she replied with her usual mysterious smile. Luna rubbed her bare arms. Though it was summer and she was wearing a tank due to the heat, goose bumps popped onto her arms. She wished they could just get down to business…

"It's been awful lately," Neville stated. "Oh, did you order anything? Go ahead, it's my treat."

She was going to answer him when the waitress came up, and he ordered a large ice cream sundae. Luna ordered a dragonfruit smoothie, and then they were left alone again. "So, your treat?"

Neville chuckled. "Why not?" He scratched his nose. "Actually, there's something I wanted to talk to you about…"

Oh, great. Here it comes…, she thought, preparing herself for what she was sure would be an ensuing interrogation about her and Remus.

"I was thinking that we should see other people."

Luna blinked. Okay, not what she was expecting. "You want to break up?" she elaborated with a blank face.

He fretted. "Luna, it's not-! Okay," he sighed, "you can take it that way. But, see… Neither of us have any experience. This isn't just the first serious relationship we've had. This is the first relationship for both of us." He waited while the waitress brought them their orders. Neville gripped his spoon. "I want to date other women, make sure that I'm the right one for you."

"Or make sure that you're not the right one for me."

"Yes… You can take it that way, too. But…"

Luna half-heartedly smiled. "If you want that, Neville, then I can't tie you down. I may not be the right one for you, even."

He looked up at her with worried eyes. "You're perfect, Luna! Don't ever think otherwise! It's just…" He ate some of his ice cream. "I think someone else sees that, and I have to wonder if he's the right one for you instead of me."

Now she straightened up. "Neville, I want you to know…"

"Don't worry," he said. "I admit, I was kinda hurt, but I find it doesn't bug me as much as I thought it would. Another reason for me to figure out if I'm the right man for you."

"Then that's it."

"That's it."

"…That's it." And suddenly, she really wanted to see Remus. Not to confess her love, but because Neville was so blasé about this. She had to wonder if she was losing a friend, as well. One thing was for sure, though: She now understood her feelings for Neville were definitely platonic.

She could now give Remus the right answer.

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When Remus went back to teaching, his workload was lightened a bit. Sirius took some of his classes so he could have some grieving periods, because the divorce was finalized barely a week from that horrendous night.

He kept to himself more often now, though his mind would wander. Always there was something to worry about. Luna, for instance; he hadn't seen her in about two months. Again, he wondered if he had chased her away, too. It was getting to the point that Remus wondered why he even bothered with other people anymore.

Some time after the miscarriage fiasco something brand new hooked its claws in Remus.

It just wasn't his year…

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Two days after his divorce was settled, Remus was lounging in his office with a book cracked open. It was lunch time, but he didn't have an appetite, like he lacked most of these days.

He rubbed his eyes. Exhaustion was wearing him down, but he had a class next period, and he needed to prepare. He considered taking a quick nap when there was a knock at his door. He was suddenly very much awake.

It was not Luna, however. Minerva walked up to his desk, her face not grave, but not simply displeased either. Remus swung his legs off his desk and stood.

"Minerva, what's wrong?" he asked.

"The headmaster requests your presence in his office," she answered in a clipped tone. "Albus wants to see you immediately, Remus."

Remus nodded and she left. He looked down at his things, closing a drawer and his book. He pushed his chair in and locked up his office, and made his way to Dumbledore's office.

Right outside the headmaster's door, he caught the end of a sentence. "…one that hasn't been blown out of proportion." It was Dumbledore.

The werewolf entered the office then, wondering why Ginny and Sirius sat before the headmaster. "You called, Albus?" he asked.

Dumbledore nodded. "I need you to take over the Defense Against the Dark Arts class for the seventh years. Your fourth years will be handed to Sirius, and I need you to test Ginny on her knowledge of the class so far."

Remus did a double-take. "Wuh- I- Yes, headmaster," he answered. He glanced at Sirius, who lowered his gaze. So, Sirius would tell him later.

"That is all, Professor Lupin. You may go."

Dumbledore didn't say anything further until Remus had left. The brunette wizard returned to his office, definitely shocked. The only thing he could reason was that Sirius and Ginny- Sirius and Ginny-

Those two must've been caught doing something inappropriate.

Mooney steered clear of guesses about what they might have been doing. Something else boggled him about this. After all, Ginny still blamed Sirius for Ron's death and her losing Harry.

… Didn't she?

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When night rolled around, Remus dragged Sirius away from supper to explain what was going on. Sirius was sad, maybe a bit depressed, so he went with Remus without a word.

They went to Remus's room, and Remus uncharacteristically pulled out a small bottle of firewhiskey. He poured a glass for each of them, and he took a small sip from his own. He waited for Sirius to speak.

"I'm…in love with Ginny," he said.

Remus spat out his drink. "What?!!"

Sirius looked up at him. "It's exactly as I said. I'm in love with Ginny, Mooney. She's in love with me, as well."

Again, Remus nearly choked. "WHAT?!!!"

Padfoot looked away and put his glass down on a table, untouched. "Dumbledore found us out, that's why he's separated us."

The werewolf blinked several time in rapid succession. "Can we rewind? Whatever happened to Ginny hating you so much that she practically wanted you dead?!!"

Sirius wistfully grinned. "She did still hate me for a bit at the beginning of the year. But when we all got the wedding invites to Harry and Hermione's wedding, she was broken." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I was there to comfort her. It took some time, but I realized I had fallen for her. And she had fallen for me. She told me so back around December."

"It's May!" Remus exclaimed. "You've been with her for that long?!"

He nodded. "Yep. She, uh, didn't stay at school over Christmas break, either…," he added in a low voice, averting his eyes and scratching his beard with his index finger.

"OH MY-!!! You took her HOME WITH YOU?!!!!!!"

"What? She didn't want to see her parents or Harry and Hermione. She was also rather forceful, Remus." He blinked. "A little frightening, really."

Remus heaved a great sigh. And I'm in a bad situation? he told himself. He sat down on his bed and cracked his neck. "What happened today, Sirius?"

Now Sirius's eyes darkened. "We…were having an argument. It was a pretty vicious one. We were standing outside the Room of Requirement, shouting at each other, when Dumbledore yelled 'Silence!' at us. Then he dragged us to his office, where he told us that he's a fan of love, but that this is a scandal, so we had to be separated, now you have her class and have to test her, he owled Molly and Arthur, and now there's a Distance Charm set in place. We're not allowed within twenty meters of each other."

"Oh." So, that was everything. Well, not everything. Remus was sure there was more, but Sirius looked shattered, and Remus knew better than to push an already fragmented person. He knew from experience.

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Ah, yes. We coincide here with chapter 19 of To the Future, but I thought this was fairly interesting from Rem's pov. That, and Luna and Neville's break-up. Ooh, I can't wait to write more!

And I hope you guys can't wait either, so let me know with a review!! Thank you!!!

-mew-tsubaki

P.S. –One more chapter dedicated to: ashleyahh and TranslucentDarkness.