XXIX
Catalyst
Three minutes in the Strengthening Solution. That's what Neville had advised. Hermione Slowly dropped the chopped lovage root into the Strengthening Solution. It took about three days to brew a high-quality batch of the solution, and this morning her batch had finally matured enough to use with the lovage.
She watched the reaction closely, noticing how the solution changed from turquoise to a deep red color over the course of three minutes. Finally, when the reaction was finished, Hermione retrieved the lovage root, draining the remaining red liquid from the cauldron.
Footsteps on the other side of the room reminded her of Snape's presence. Hermione looked up just as he arrived in front of her. His eyes were focused intently on the lovage root and her cauldron.
"What do you think?" she asked, eyeing the root.
He shook his head. "Over saturated. The Strengthening Solution was too strong and the lovage was chopped."
"Neville said I should chop it before putting it in the potion."
He shook his head again, a sneer forming on his lips. "What does Longbottom know about proper dilution and saturation?"
"He's not completely stupid, you know," Hermione bit back.
Snape quirked an eyebrow indignantly, but didn't respond to this statement. Instead, he froze in place. His only movement was a quick jerking motion as his right hand gripped his left forearm.
Hermione immediately recognized what was happening. "Oh no," she murmured, searching Snape's expression for some indication of what he was thinking.
"I must go," he said shortly, his words void of emotion. He took a few steps backwards, turning and making his way towards the door.
"Are you sure it's safe? Sir, after what happened last week…" She trailed off, knowing that he was quite tired of hearing her speak about his little rescue effort that resulted in Neville, Luna, and Lavender arriving at the Estate.
He stopped in his tracks for a split second before springing forward into motion yet again. "I must go. I will inform Albus on my way." These were his only words as he disappeared from the lab.
Hermione stood stock still for a minute before remembering her cauldron and ingredients still sitting on her workstation. "Shit," she murmured, racing over to the lovage root and finding that it truly was oversaturated. To make it worse she'd forgotten to use a preservation charm immediately as she was supposed to. This batch was completely useless now. She'd have to try again tomorrow, and possibly create a whole new batch of Strengthening Solution. That alone would take three more days.
Despite wanting to work through her stress about Snape being called away and her anger at herself for letting the lovage root go bad, Hermione had to get outside. Another dueling practice was scheduled to begin in about ten minutes, and she knew she didn't want to miss anything.
Hermione made her way out of Snape's lab and out into the gardens, passing the greenhouse and the shyly blooming flowers that Mrs. Weasley had been planting. She arrived at the clearing to find that everyone else was already there, chatting and waiting to begin dueling. Even Neville, Luna, and Lavender had been excited to come out and work on their skills.
Remus' eyes were locked on her as she approached, and she knew that he could tell something was wrong. She strolled over, standing beside him and studying the ground. "Snape was just called away," she murmured, digging the toe of her shoe into the grass.
"Called away by who?" Ron butted in loudly, standing just behind Hermione.
Everyone was watching her now. "Voldemort."
"That happens a lot though, yeah?" asked Harry.
She nodded. "I'm just not quite sure it's safe anymore." As she said this, she scanned the group. Sirius was fiddling with his wand, as if bored by the subject of Snape. Lavender and Neville both watched her with confused expressions, not understanding why this would worry Hermione. Everyone else was focused on her, understanding her cause for worry and sympathizing.
"He can take care of himself," Remus assured her, "I'm sure there's nothing to worry about.
But she did worry. She worried that Voldemort had known of Snape's true allegiances for a long time and he was just waiting for the right moment. She worried for Snape's safety and she worried for their own safety here at the Estate. Sure, Professor Snape was an accomplished Occlumens, but she didn't doubt that Voldemort had the power to break him down and find out that the Order was hiding at the Estate if he really wanted to.
These thoughts clouded Hermione's mind as she was paired up with Draco to duel. Draco knew she was distracted, and started with easier spells to deflect. Hermione threw back the same innocuous hexes. A few minutes into their duel, she was still unable to focus. She was so distracted, in fact, that she completely failed to put up a shield against Draco's cutting spell.
The spell caught her completely off guard, spinning towards her and hitting her right upper-arm. She gasped, feeling the hot, burning pain as the spell sliced through the skin.
Draco stopped. "Shit, Granger," he muttered, walking forward and lowering his wand, "where was your shield?"
Before Hermione could respond, a body had stepped between herself and Draco, blocking him from view. She realized belatedly that it was Remus, and he was seething with rage. He began stalking towards Draco, wand drawn and at his side, until Hermione reached out and caught his sleeve.
"Remus!" she hissed, pulling on his sleeve roughly, "calm down!"
He took three deep breaths, eyes still locked on Draco, who appeared wholly terrified of the raging werewolf before him. Tonks and Sirius were walking over, concerned looks on their faces. Across the field, many had stopped their duel to see what was going on. Harry and Ginny were now approaching as well.
Hermione gave Remus' wrist a hard warning squeeze and he finally turned away from Draco. His eyes fell to her arm, where she was bleeding profusely. It was a deep cut, one that could have been easily avoided had she only put up a simple deflecting shield.
"Alright there, Hermione?" Tonks asked, arriving at her side and inspecting the gash.
Hermione nodded. "Can you heal it?" She would typically ask Remus, as all his years as a werewolf made him unusually adept at healing cuts and gashes. However, he was currently shaking with rage, rather incapable of doing something as delicate as healing.
Tonks cleared the blood from Hermione's arm and began to mend it. Meanwhile, Sirius grabbed Remus by the shoulder and pulled him several more feet away from Draco, who still looked disturbed.
"What happened?" Harry asked. He and Ginny were now standing by Remus and Sirius.
"I was just distracted," Hermione explained, "it was my fault."
"There's no problem with getting a little roughed up while practicing your dueling," Tonks supplied, "in fact, it's excellent that Hermione and Draco are taking enough risks to have something like this happen."
Remus looked like he wanted to say something, but Sirius stopped him, murmuring something quietly and pulling the werewolf's attention away from Tonks and Hermione.
"Remus is certainly quite protective," Tonks mused, finishing up the spell on Hermione's arm, leaving no trace of a scar behind.
"You can say that again," Ginny interjected, standing beside Hermione now. She and Tonks laughed.
"It's just the full moon," Hermione said, eyes focused on Remus, flickering to Harry and Ron as they stood nearby, hoping that no one else noticed exactly how protective Remus was feeling.
Of course, Draco noticed. He was still standing several feet away, unsure whether or not it was safe to move closer to Hermione or ask if she was alright. He looked genuinely frightened, and Hermione wondered how feral the look in Remus' eyes must have been to evoke this fear in Draco.
"Right," Tonks chirped, pulling back from Hermione and facing the group, "let's get back to dueling!"
The rest of the day was spent switching partners and fighting as much as possible. Remus watched Hermione frequently, but eventually cooled off enough to actually focus on his own duels and work with Neville and Luna on their offensive spells for a while. By the end of the day, everyone forgot about the incident.
The dueling session left both Remus and Hermione sweaty and in need of a shower. After escaping inside the house, Remus pulled Hermione by the hand down to the bathroom he shared with Sirius and Tonks. She laughed quietly as he checked that the coast was clear before shutting the door behind them.
He turned on the shower before returning his attention to her, quickly pulling her shirt over her head, kissing her firmly on the lips while he worked on pulling her sports bra over her head too. She made quick work of his clothes, undoing his shirt and pants.
It was a matter of seconds before they were both in the shower together, and he was kissing her and pressing her up against the wall. He kissed with teeth and tongue and vigor. Hermione gave it right back to him, her hand trailing down his chest and stomach, dipping lower to grip his throbbing erection.
"Fuck," he growled, closing his eyes and dropping his head back at the divine sensation of her hand wrapped around his cock.
She must have been grinning, because when he peeked down at her he mumbled a short, "what are you smiling about?"
She stood on her tiptoes, starting at the base of his neck and kissing her way up to the shell of his ear. "I love it when you curse," she whispered.
He let out a rumbling chuckle that came from the back of his throat, his head still pressed against the cold tiles of the wall. She began to pump her hand. His hips rocked forward almost involuntarily.
"Fuck, Hermione," he whispered in a tone that made her feel powerful. It was getting close to the full moon, which probably explained their sudden desire for each other.
When she ran her thumb over the tip of his cock he shuddered. "I'm not going to last if you keep going like this," he said through clenched teeth.
"Then fuck me now," she replied boldly, flicking her thumb over the tip once more.
She couldn't tell if he was surprised by her harsh language or too deep in the haze of lust to be surprised. All she could coherently notice was the immediate darkening of his eyes, and then the almost feral way he kissed her.
She dropped her hand and he stepped forward, his arms coming to grip her thighs as he hoisted her up, pressing her against the wall of the shower in a way that she was certain would put a lot of physical strain on his muscles. She knew he didn't care. As the full moon drew closer all his muscles ached and protested at any physical labor. It was good to mix a little pleasure in there.
He sunk into her wet heat and she whined at the intrusion. Her back was pressed against the cold tiles of the shower wall, and Remus was pressing at her front. The water from the showerhead plummeted down against his back as he thrust forward, reducing Hermione to an incoherent state of moans and sighs of pleasure.
"You… feel… so good," Remus whispered between thrusts. His mouth attached to her neck, kissing and biting lightly. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Hermione wondered if he would leave a mark there. She found that she didn't really care.
When they came together it was fast and rough. Remus drew in and out of her, nearly pounding when he put his weight into it. She screamed, tightening her grip on his shoulders and pulling his hips closer with her legs.
As came down from their high Remus released her from her position against the wall, moving her legs down slowly until they touched the floor and she could stand up straight. Her knees wobbled, and she was sure it was from the burning, shattering pleasure she'd just experienced.
He arched his back, stretching it out and wincing slightly. "Did I hurt you?" Hermione asked, truly concerned now that she wasn't so blinded by her desire.
He shook his head, dipping in to kiss her for a solid ten seconds before he pulled back. "Nothing out of the ordinary for shower sex."
She almost laughed. She'd just had shower sex with Remus. It was certainly something she wouldn't forget for a long time.
"Let's get cleaned up," he supplied, reaching for the bar of soap and a cloth, "dinner's in a half hour."
She nodded, sidestepping him so that she could get under the spray of the shower, wetting her hair and body. Remus' eyes were still on her, still dark with desire. She couldn't imagine him wanting more after that. "Is the increased sex drive particularly bad for you before the full moon?"
He arched a brow at her.
"I'm just curious," she murmured.
He lost some of his wariness, probably remembering that Hermione was a constantly curious person, and she would always be researching or learning in some form or another, especially about Lycanthropy. "Some months are much worse than others, as I'm sure you've noticed by now."
"But this month you seem much more affected by it than me," she replied, putting shampoo in her hair and beginning to scrub out her wild locks.
He shrugged. "I suppose you could also account it to the fact that I'm technically your Alpha."
"My Alpha?" Hermione didn't know if she liked the sound of that.
He nodded, shifting his jaw and standing stock still in front of her. He looked… anxious. "I changed you… I infected you. That technically makes me your Alpha."
She'd heard the term many times before, and perhaps even seen it mentioned in a book about lycanthropy, but no explanation or background had ever been given. Hermione had always pushed it aside, thinking that it was some insignificant colloquialism. "So what does that mean? You're more inclined to have sex with me? I'm more inclined to have sex with you?" Oh god. Her mind was racing. How had she never considered something like this before? Was the only reason she was attracted to him because of some strange werewolf hierarchy? Was the only reason she had feelings for him because he was her Alpha? Because she was- what? His Beta?
He could see the worry on her face. "No, no, no, it's not like that, Hermione." He stepped closer, his hands coming to clasp her shoulders, smoothing up and down on her arms. She closely examined the prickling sensation she felt when he touched her. That was the magic of their shared lycanthropy. She swallowed dryly. Why had she never been more suspicious of the feelings she got around him? The wave of calmness? The desire to be near him?
He pulled back, scrubbing his hands over his face. "Look, it's really not what you're thinking it is, Hermione. It's not some sick sexual dominance thing or- or anything like that."
"Then what is it?" she shot back, crossing her arms over her chest. "Please, explain it to me." There were still suds of shampoo in her hair, and the hot water of the shower was still spattering down on her back.
He let out a long, deep sigh. "It's just an instinctual thing. Closer to the full moon we feel an increased sex drive, especially towards other werewolves."
She could still feel some questions rising in the back of her mind. Was that the only reason they were together? The only reason they were attracted to each other?
"It's not- it's not something that's extremely compelling," he continued, rubbing his temple with one hand. "It's just… there. And it's stronger for werewolves who have a particular bond, but only around the full moon."
"And we have a particular bond because you're my Alpha?" The word rolled off her tongue with acidity and left a sour taste in her mouth.
"Yes, well- sort of. It's old magic, Hermione. Because I changed you I'm your Alpha. Fenrir Greyback is my Alpha. Whoever changed Greyback is his Alpha."
She grimaced. "So what, you're attracted to Fenrir Greyback around the full moon?"
"No! It doesn't work like that." He let out a slow breath, shutting his eyes tightly before opening them again. "It only works when the two people are attracted to each other outside of just the affects of the full moon. The attraction is simply strengthened by the moon."
"How come I've never seen more than a small mention about this before? You loaned me all those books about Lycanthropy back at Hogwarts."
He shook his head. "It's not something written in books. Hardly anybody knows about this. It's mainly passed down by word of mouth. I learned about it when I spent some time with a pack when I was younger."
She frowned, staring down at the bathroom tiles. "I don't like the idea of this."
He nodded. "It's not as bad as you think, Hermione. I promise. It really is something that only applies to werewolves already in some sort of sexual relationship. I just happen to be your Alpha. That strengthens our relationship even more, along with my need to protect you and keep you near me around the full moon."
She chewed her lower lip, thinking all of this over. "I'm going to have to do more research on this. I'm sure it's been documented somewhere." They'd hardly explored the expansive library at the Estate yet. Perhaps there were some older books in there.
He nodded slowly. "I'm sorry I never thought to explain it to you earlier. It's really not something I've ever seen as that important. You know I don't only like you because you're a werewolf."
She nodded. "I know." What Hermione wouldn't admit was that she had been truly worried for a moment.
"Come on, let's finish washing up before anyone notices we're missing." He reached for the bar of soap again. Hermione nodded, stepping back under the spray of the shower and rinsing out her hair.
As the day progressed, Hermione had become more and more worried about Professor Snape. He'd left at around eight in the morning, and now it was just past midnight and he still wasn't back. Hermione tried to distract herself with other things, namely reading and trying to research this damn Alpha thing, but she just couldn't.
"Hard to concentrate?" Remus' voice floated over. He sat in one of the armchairs of the library. Hermione had taken up the couch and Sirius was currently seated in the other armchair. Remus and Sirius had been quietly discussing what they wanted to do for the next dueling session, but now they were both silent, watching Hermione.
"I'm getting concerned," she admitted, glancing between them.
Remus gave her a sympathetic nod. Sirius had the tact to look downwards and study the carpet in the library. She knew that he wasn't worried about Snape. How could he be? They honestly hated each other.
Remus cast a Tempus. "He's been gone for longer than this before."
"But has it ever been this dangerous?" Hermione closed the book in her lap, leaning her head against the back of the couch. "I don't understand how no one is as concerned as I am about this."
"Severus is quite capable of taking care of himself, Hermione. I think you underestimate him." As Remus said this, his eyes briefly drifted over her legs, stretched out on top of the couch, and then to her face. She could tell that the approaching full moon was taking an effect on him, even if he tried to pretend that it wasn't. There was just a hint of barely concealed hunger in his eyes. She wondered if Sirius could tell. She wondered if anyone else in this house could tell.
Hermione sighed. "You're right." She didn't completely believe it, but she also didn't feel like arguing about it right now. She turned her head to Sirius, "how do you think Harry's doing?"
Sirius picked his gaze up from the ground, considering the question before responding. "Better than he was a couple weeks ago. I think the dueling practice helps a lot, though the Order meetings always serve to stress him out a bit."
Hermione nodded in thought. "I sympathize with him," she murmured, "it's hard to sit around here and pretend there isn't a war going on outside."
The library had taken on an ominous silence. Remus broke it. "I have a feeling that it won't be much longer until it's over."
That statement both frightened and encouraged Hermione. She was about to respond, when she heard the unmistakable noise of footsteps in the corridor. She nearly leapt off the couch, stalking towards the door to the library and sticking her head outside. A figure had just entered the house through the front door, and was now making its way to the staircase.
"Professor?" Hermione stepped out of the shadows, alerting him to her presence.
Snape froze. She could make out his face now and he looked troubled. He still wore the full Death Eater robes.
"Is everything alright?" She inquired gingerly. Behind her, she could feel Remus exit the library and approach.
"Yes," Snape answered shortly. "Nothing to worry about."
Before Hermione could get another word in, Snape stalked up the staircase, leaving Hermione and Remus standing alone.
"Do you think he's okay?" she asked, turning to face Remus.
He considered the question for a second before nodding. "Severus can take care of himself. If anything happened, we'll surely hear about it at the next Order meeting."
Remus obviously wasn't concerned. Hermione tried to convince herself that this meant she shouldn't be concerned either. Still, there was worry in the back of her mind as she followed Remus back into the library.
Author's Note: So things took a slightly serious turn in this chapter. Sadly, chapter 30 is where it gets even worse. Many of you guessed correctly in your reviews for the last chapter, though I won't say who was right…