Chapter 14

When Remus felt the tickle of the wards allowing Hermione through, he was grateful for the few moments he'd have to school his features to impassivity. The truth was he was more excited to see her every day than he'd ever been over Christmas as a kid and summer as a teenager. Put together.

Multiplied by a hundred.

But he tried to act causal, launching himself into an armchair and picking up a discarded Muggle classic that must have been Hermione's. He'd never read... Frankenstein? It sounded familiar... He opened to a random page and tried to look enthralled, or at least suitably distracted. He wasn't sure why he felt the need to put on a front just now; he knew Hermione couldn't suspect the potion he'd just taken to quell his sense of smell. If she knew of it, that meant she would want to know why, and he'd be forced to tell her he didn't trust himself not to... rape her. Remus closed his eyes against the word, revulsion rising in his throat.

But when Hermione walked into the sitting room, all thoughts, self-deprecating and otherwise, were wiped from his head as though they were chalk and she, the eraser.

"Evening, Remus." Hermione smiled winningly, throwing her briefcase onto the loveseat. That was unlike her; she usually put it on the desk and went about unpacking it right away.

"How are you, love?" he asked composedly. Inside, his mind was racing. She's so beautiful, so lovely, so amazing... How could you even think of spoiling her? She'll never stay, never stay. She doesn't smell right, not at all, I don't like it, I should be able to smell her, maybe I need to get closer, yes, closer, that will help...

Remus was on his feet, moving toward her before he'd given his brain the signal to rise. He pushed her hair back over her shoulder; it was always in her way, and he wondered why she didn't just wear it up... He'd love to see her slender throat and that decisive claim mark...

"I'm fine, a little tired. I haven't been sleeping well," she admitted. He knew. He'd tried to hold her while she tossed, but she was stronger than she appeared.

"Why not let me take care of dinner tonight, then?" He punctuated his offer with a light kiss to her lips and realised immediately how long it had been since he'd done even that. Days, though it felt like weeks. He was such a fool, such an arse to push her away when he needed her so badly.

Hermione looked sceptical, and he grinned. He knew she'd been faking when she said she liked his cooking!

"I can make sandwiches, if that's all right with you. And maybe some soup?" He nuzzled her neck with his nose. He wished he could smell her. It had comforted him more than he had realised. Now, it was as though he was cheating on his mate because he couldn't scent her familiar smell. It was almost as though she was a stranger, and that thought disturbed him. But if he focused his attentions on his other senses... Sight: her soft smile, her limpid brown eyes, her soft and lightly bitten lower lip. Sound: the softest of sighs escaping her lips when he licked her collarbone. Taste: the deliciousness of said collarbone, sweet and familiar. Touch: the misleading frailty of her arms, silken and smooth, tempting. Oh, yes, there were many ways to experience Hermione Granger, and he would do just fine without his sense of smell.

He would rid himself of it forever if it meant she was safe from the monster in him. And after tonight, he would know if such drastic measures were necessary.

"Sandwiches sound..." Hermione sighed. "Just fine. Perfect." She looped her arms around his neck, and he could scarcely believe she was so willing to forgive him for the detestable way he'd be been avoiding her. It had hurt him as well, and he knew his reasons. He couldn't imagine how she had felt without knowing them.

It didn't take long for Remus to decide the sandwiches could damn well wait.

He led her to the sofa, pulling her onto his lap and settling one of her legs on either side of his.

"Remus, gods, I've missed you, missed this," Hermione whispered against his lips. He ran his hands over her body, settling on her hips. He dragged her body lightly over his groin, letting her feel exactly how much he'd missed her in return.

"I know, and I'm sorry. I know I seem to say that a lot, but I mean it. I didn't want to hurt you. I want you to always be safe with me," he told her softly, unbuttoning her blouse and kissing each bared inch as he freed it.

"You've never hurt me. You've scared me, maybe, but not hurt me. I... I really care about you, and I need you to trust me. Whatever you're afraid of, we can tackle together. We're a team now, and I want us to work together. Please, Remus, don't push me away. I hated that."

He paused in his ministrations to look at her, really look at her. She was entirely in earnest. She really did want to be his partner, his mate. Her eyes were slightly wide, and they were shining so brightly, he'd be even more of a fool than he already was not to believe her words; not when she obviously believed them.

He pushed her shirt off her shoulders, fingers running along the delicate bones of her arms and wrists before he took her hands in his and brought them to his lips.

"I hated it, too. From now on, we work together. I promise," he vowed, trying not to wince as he thought of the potion he'd taken not long ago...another secret he had to keep from her.

Hermione smiled gratefully and ran her hands over his chest, unbuttoning his shirt and touching his bared skin. He always felt so heated when her fingers touched him, and now was no exception. Her fingers trailed up his arm, across his shoulder and neck to his jaw, where they moved to his lips. Hermione looked at him intently as she traced the outline of his mouth, and Remus held back from nipping at her explorative digits.

When she gently pressed one finger inside his lips, he no longer felt the need to hold back. Biting her finger and licking it while it was trapped within his mouth, he yanked her skirt up harshly so that it rested around her hips. Hermione moaned, pulling her finger away and replacing it with her tongue, and he nipped it instead. Her kisses were always so sweet to begin with, but Remus knew exactly how to draw out the passion from within her.

One hand caressing between her thighs and the other holding the back of her neck so she couldn't break the intense kiss, Remus felt the wolf step into the fore. He moved her panties to the side so he could slide two fingers into her, eyes closing at the wetness he felt already. She was always so ready for him, and it drove him mad. Unbuttoning his pants but not removing them, Remus freed his desperate erection. Without fail, she made him hard in mere moments, dripping pre-come and ready to plunge within her.

Hermione had the same idea, because she rose up and took his member in her hand. She slid slowly on him, balancing herself with hands on his shoulders with a look of concentrated bliss on her features.

Remus moaned at the beautiful tightness of his mate, and she mirrored his noises with the sexiest whimper that made his cock pulse in response. She began to slowly move her hips, leaning in to kiss him gently. Remus permitted the slow lovemaking until he could take no more, and then he dominated the kiss, warning her that he was about to change things.

He gripped her hips tightly and pulled her down firmly on his cock. She threw her head back and Remus grinned, loving to see her lose control.

He held her in place and thrust up into her, beginning with slow and deep plunges but eventually moving faster, bouncing her hard against his lap. She made delicious broken moaning noises, and Remus brought her head back in for another torturous kiss. Moving from her lips to her neck, Remus laved the claim mark, biting it gently and relishing the responding clench of her tight walls.

"Hermione... you're beautiful," he told her, feeling that, for some reason, she just needed to know that right now. She smiled and thanked him sweetly before swearing ferociously when he slammed her onto him particularly hard.

"Tell me," he whispered against her lips.

She knew what he meant and said in a low voice, "I'm yours, Remus. I belong to you. Yours!" The last word was almost a shriek as her orgasm flooded her and she clamped down on his cock so hard he could barely move, but it didn't matter because a moment later he was coming, too, straining into her and calling her name like a prayer.

Hermione slumped against him bonelessly, and Remus chuckled. He never felt as complete as he did after he'd come inside his mate. He only regretted that he couldn't smell her. Her scent after orgasm was like ambrosia to his heightened sense, and it made him crazy for her. Crazier.

But the mood was inevitably broken when he noticed the time. The moon would be rising within the hour, and Remus wanted to be in his cell with more than enough time to spare. He also had to take the final dose of Wolfsbane; the transformation was always easier with the final draught fresh in his veins.

"Come on, love. I have to get downstairs, and you're to go up to our room and stay there until morning."

Hermione looked ready to fight, such a rapid change from the look of utter peace the moment before.

"Remus, can't I stay with you during the change? Won't you feel better knowing I'm right there?" Her voice was soft, almost cajoling, and he knew she believed he'd give in to her. But he'd made his decision and wanted her nowhere near him as he transformed.

"It doesn't matter how I feel. I need to know you're safe. You know it would destroy me if anything were to happen to you, even if I were to only scare you."

Hermione kissed him, kneeling up so he slipped from her wet embrace. She readjusted her panties and pulled her skirt a little over the thighs, but Remus wouldn't remove his hands from cupping her arse, so she couldn't fix her skirt properly. She gently placed his spent cock back into his trousers and lovingly zipped them.

"I want to at least come down with you, just for a moment to say good night. That's it...then I'll leave."

Remus searched her eyes. "Promise?"

She nodded solemnly. "I promise. I know this is important to you."

"Okay, then. Let's head down."

He let her get up, and she half-cringed, half-shivered at the feeling of slickness between her thighs. Something primal in her felt marked, and she knew she would go to sleep without showering to keep the feeling. At another time in her life, she might have balked at the thought, but she felt good to be declared his, and if she couldn't have him by her side, she would have him inside her instead.

She led the way, grabbing the bag they'd prepared for the next morning. It had lots of water, fresh clothing, bandages, salves and disinfectants, Remus' wand, and a special Galleon to alert her if he needed her. It also had a small amount of food, but Remus said he rarely ate right after. The bag was new; it made her feel like she was taking care of him. She would leave it beyond the bars but within his human reach. He wanted her to lock him in the cell, and she would hate doing it, but she would do as he asked for now.

Once settled in the small cell, Hermione sat beside him on the bench. Her mind flooded with memories of when she'd first appealed to his baser nature, licking his wound and baring her throat.

Remus must have seen her blush, because he chuckled and took her into his arms. He kissed her softly, but pulled away before she could take it further.

"It's getting close, love. Time for you to head up." He nodded in the direction of the stairs, and she followed his gaze as though the doorway led to hell itself.

"Okay. Well, be safe, and... and I'll be thinking about you." She hugged him hard, wishing for the first time that things were different. She didn't mind the werewolf half of her lover... in fact, she often enjoyed it. But she knew it hurt him, made him feel ashamed, and she wished she could take that away.

"Sweet dreams, Hermione. And thank you." He kissed her again, hard this time, his passion spilling forth to show her he was not unaffected.

She turned to leave.