Be Silently Drawn || Remus Lupin & Hermione Granger

Chapter 34

Remus awoke late Sunday morning feeling groggy and grumpy from the little sleep he'd gotten last night. He'd been consumed by thoughts of Hermione and racked with apprehension at the shrewd conclusion George had drawn about him. The Weasley had seen right through him last night. He'd sensed his jealousy and knew he had feelings for Hermione.

"Well, if you want her so much, why don't you just go after her?"

Because he was old enough to be her father, for starters. And he'd likely lose her friendship if she knew how he felt. He feared that she did know how he felt now, feared George had told his girlfriend that he suspected her professor had an inappropriate interest in her, or worse, that she herself had realized he had feelings for her after seeing his ill-disguised jealousy last night. He should have been more careful, more guarded. He'd acted rashly when he'd gone after Hermione and George when they'd left the Great Hall, and he'd been foolish to fall for George's provocations.

Remus had already missed breakfast by the time he finally mustered enough energy to drag himself out of bed. He thought he'd visit the kitchens for a bite, but first he checked the post that awaited him on the table in his sitting room. Along with today's edition of the Daily Prophet were a couple of surprises — valentines. He'd forgotten it was Valentine's Day today. But who would have sent him these gifts?

The first package was of assorted sweets. The card attached revealed it was from Professor Avila, graciously thanking him for the dances last night. The other gift was a box of his favorite chocolates from Honeydukes. Remus knew before even looking at the card that it was from Vivienne. He crumpled the unread note and dumped it in the rubbish bin along with the chocolates.

He was about to leave for the kitchens, but then the headline on the front page of the Daily Prophet arrested his attention. He seized the paper and quickly read through the article. There'd been a werewolf attack last night, one involving his old schoolmate Hugh Hawthorne and his girlfriend Rosalind. . . .

His appetite gone, Remus skipped his trip to the kitchens and left the castle for St. Mungo's to see his friend.

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one was on her way to the library when she heard an unwelcome voice calling her name from behind her in the corridor. She sped up to avoid George, not in any mood to see him after what he'd done last night.

"Wait up, Hermione," he said, chasing after her. "We have to talk. Or we could continue where we left off last night and snog, whichever you prefer."

Irked by the humor in his voice, Hermione whipped around. Her anger flared at the sight of the smirk on his face and she unleashed her indignation upon him.

"I can't believe you did that! I thought you were trying to help me! Now Remus just thinks I'm —"

"I was trying to help you," George argued, "and I did! You should be thanking me right now."

"For what? Getting me into trouble?"

"No, for proving Moony is totally in love with you."

"What on earth makes you think that?"

"Come on, we can talk in here," he said, opening the door to the classroom nearest them, and Hermione realized their raised voices had attracted the attention of a few students down the corridor who'd stopped to stare at them.

Still, she didn't budge. "I am not going in there with you. Not after that stunt you pulled last night."

George rolled his eyes. "I promise I won't pull anything like that again. I'll behave myself, all right?"

Hermione reluctantly followed him into the privacy of the classroom but kept her distance for his safety. She had a sudden urge to set birds on him like she'd once done to his younger brother.