In a Lifetime

In A Lifetime
Chapter 11: The Wolf Awakens

Disclaimer: I own nothing of what you’re about to read, with the possible exception of the plot, although I’m sure it’s been done before. The places, characters, etc. belong to JK Rowling. Thanks.

The next morning dawned rainy and dreary. Hermione could see the expanse of steel gray sky through the high slot-like windows in the dungeon bedroom. She reached next to her only to find the space formerly occupied by Severus cool and empty. Sitting up and squinting at the clock, she realized that she had over slept and the potion for Remus was complete. That must be where Severus was. She got out of bed, wrapped her lab robe over her nude body, slipped into her plain white trainers and headed for the lab. The wards were down and she saw Severus sitting in front of the cauldron, a small grin on his face. He looked up as she entered.

“It’s done,” hid, id, motioning to the cooled cauldron.

Hermione peered in and saw a vivid orange liquid with the faint silver shimmer of the stasis charm over it. She smiled up at Severus as he carefully measured out a few doses into vials for storage. If that potion was in the wild, St. Mungo’s might have some need of the antidote. He measured out two more vials and handed them to Hermione.

“One extra, just in case,” he said with a smile, “We need to get these to Poppy. Feel free to use the floo this time, dear,” he added, his smile turning quickly to smirk.

Hermione glared at him and headed to the hearth in the potion master’s office. Severus watched her go with fondness and quickly cleaned up the cauldron before heading to the hospital wing himself. When he arrived, he found Hermione, Ginny, Poppy, Kyla, and Albus there awaiting him.

“How long should it take for the effects to be seen?” asked Albus, a concerned look shadowing his blue eyes.

“It should be almost immediate,” replied Severus, “is Lupin awake?”

“I have a sleeping charm on him,” said Ginny, “he was very restless last night.”

“Let’s lift the charm and see if this works,” stated Severus, looking around the room at the people who had cared for Remus Lupin since they found him at St. Mungo’s.

They filtered into the small private room where Remus lay sleeping. With a quite word, Ginny lifted the sleeping charm. Hermione attempted to hand the vial to Severus, but he nodded at her instead before speaking with Remus.

“Lu…Remus,” he began, “we think we’ve found the antidote to the potion tha cau causing the blockage of your speech and memory. Hermione...Miss Granger...is going to administer it. I need you to try to remember who you are and to try to speak. It may be difficult, but I need you to try.”

Remus nodded as Hermione gently tilted back his head and poured the potion into his mouth. Remus swallowed, his eyes opening wide as the potion began coursing through his body. The medical staff watched as a sickly muddy green light emanated from his body, dissipating into the air and a brighter yellow light began to surround his body. The yellow light pulsed as the green light faded, and settled into blue before being absorbed into Remus’ body. With a gasp, Remus sat up straight and looked around at the people surrounding him. His gaze settled first on Severus.

“Snape,” he croaked out hoarsely, “if I didn’t know better, I would think you were trying to poison me with that foul concoction.”

With a highly uncharacteristic whoop, Severus scooped up Hermione and spun her around, “We did it love, we did it!” he said with a brilliant grin that lit up the room. Hermione’s grin rivaled his and the rest of the room’s occupants stared at them, none more than Remus.

“Am I missing something?” he asked, his voice still rough and gravelly from years of disuse, “Hermione?”

“About ten years worth of somethings,” remarked Hermione, sitting in a chair next to Remus, “I’ve grown up, gotten married, gotten divorced, and gotten engaged.”

Albus smiled as he watched Hermione speak with Remus. He pulled Severus and Poppy aside and spoke with them quietly.

“I think we should keep things light for the few hours or so,” he said, as Poppy and Severus nodded in agreement, “I don’t want to overwhelm him.”

“Agreed,” said Severus, “and I think we should get Potter here. I know he’s a Quidditch player by trade, but he’s also an Auror by training. He had an excellent relationship with Lupin. I think I will be taken my potions classes back today. Those dunderheads have been far too complacent without me there.”

“I will owl Harry immediately,” agreed Albus, “and I am certain that you will hear no complaints from Professor Ildwild. Your first years have been giving him a run for his money.”

Severus snorted, “Wait until they see me enter the room this morning. I can’t wait to see the look on their vacant little faces.”

“You take too much pleasure in terrorizing your students, Severus,” chided Albus.

“Only the first, second, and third years, Albus. I have lightened up considerably on the fourth through seventh years.”

“If you say so, Severus, if you say so,” smiled Albus.

Severus smirked and headed to the dungeon classroom where the first years were undoubtedly attempting to take advantage of the mild mannered Professor Ildwild. With his trademarked sneer and billowing robes, he swept into the classroom.

“Thank you Professor Ildwild, for taking over my classes for the past few days. Our research was a success, however, and I am able to resume teaching my classes.” Severus heard a small groan from the Gryffindor side of the room and whirled around, “Twenty points from Gryffindor for that lack of respect. Now, we are brewing the Alexandrian Potion this morning. Can anyone tell me the purpose of this unusual yet rudimentary potion?”

Professor Mortimus Ildwild gratefully picked up his notes and quietly left the classroom, hoping that Professor Snape would never be called away for any length of time again. He now had a better understanding of the complex potions master’s dark moods and snappish demeanor and could sympathize, not that Severus Snape would brook any sympathy.


* * * * * *

Hermione sat with Remus, telling him about her life over the past ten years. It seemed that Remus didn’t wish to stop talking, even when Hermione gently reminded him of the fragile state of his voice. Remus just shrugged and took more of the honey and lemon based throat soothing potion. He hadn’t talked in ten years, and hadn’t remembered any of his life or his friends. He had so many questions, not least of which was his concern about the coming of the full moon.

“Now, this potion you and Sev cooked up, you’re that positive that it has worked?” he asked, concern crossing his haggard face.

“We will take precautions tomorrow night, Remus,” promised Hermione, “But it looks good. We have been monitoring your blood cells and there has been no mutation of the cells that we have normally seen this close to the full moon.”

“If this works, Hermione, it would seem that I owe you and Severus my life in more ways than one. I’ve dreamed of becoming cured, but never believed it possible.”

“I’m hoping that is possible. This is the first full moon of the final dose of the trial for the first St Mungo’s subjects. Two mornings from now we will know for sure that the C-factor potion works on werewolves.”

“What then?” asked Remus, sipping a bit of tea.

“They attempt the trials on vampiric subjects and send us the results,” replied Hermione, taking a bit of toast.

“Now, we were up to your marriage to Harry, when you started realizing it wasn’t right,” prodded Remus, still not quite reconciling the self assured woman in front of him with the young woman he had last seen on the battlefield dodging curses.

“I realized that there was no grand passion in our marriage,” admitted Hermione, “I loved him, I always will, he just wasn’t the one to make my heart beat faster.”

“And Severus?”

Hermione smiled and took another bit of toast from the plate, chewing and swallowing before answering, “Severus makes my heart pound and my pulse race. We are so well suited for one another.”

“So she divorced me and we moved on with our lives, working all the time to get back the friendship we once had,” said a voice from the doorway, “and hopefully we\'ll all live happily ever after.”

Remus furrowed his brow as he looked at the tall lanky man in the doorway, “Harry Potter?” he said, “My how you have grown. Where might the third member of the Golden Trio be?”

Harry strode into the room, kissing Hermione on the cheek and clasping hands with Remus.

“Ron has changed quite a bit, Remus,” said Harry sadly, “I’m afraid he alienated many people, not least of all Hermione and Ginny.”

Ginny walked into the room carrying another dose of the throat soothing potion, “My brother,” she said, handing Remus the vial, “has married well and never lets anyone forget it. He thought that taking an internship here was beneath the sister of the great Ronald Weasley. Hopefully he will outgrow this phase of thinking the world will bow down to him because he married into the Brown family.”

“Lavender Brown?” asked Remus, a look of surprise in his eyes.

“Yes, Lavender Brown. And let me tell you, Remus, the wedding was a chore to attend,” remarked Harry, “Hermione had to drag me there via wand power.”

“You were the best man, Harry, you had to be there,” said Hermione with a smile.

“Well, I didn’t enjoy myself. Ron started showing symptoms of Prat’s Disease then and there.”

“And never quite got over it. He gave me holy Hades for taking up with Severus,” said Hermione, shuddering.

“But Hermione hexed him good,” smiled Ginny, plumping up Remus’ pillows, “she turned his…um…manhood green.”

Remus laughed his first laugh in ten years, which culminated in a ragged cough. Ginny handed him his tea with an order than he drink it immediately.

“I warned you, Mr. Lupin, about taxing your voice. Poppy will have our heads if you lose your voice so soon after regaining it,” chided Ginny.

“When you’re feeling up to it, Remus, Albus would like us to visit Mr. Ollivander’s and get you a new wand,” said Harry, grabbing a biscuit off the breakfast tray, “with your voice and memory back, the magic should be back as well. I’m sure Albus will be in to test your abilities after the full moon tomorrow.”

Ginny looked at her watch, “OK you two, Remus needs his rest. You can come back later and tax his voice and stamina more. Now he belongs to me and a dose of dreamless sleep.”

Harry and Remus both looked at Ginny as shnt ant about her business, the glances were not lost on Hermione. She wondered if the two men were interested in Ginny as more than a mediwitch, and if it was so, which one would win her heart. Hermione shook her head at the thought that she entertained a romantic notion. Great Gods, being engaged to Severus was turning her soft. It was then she realized that she never told Harry about the engagement. With a goodbye to Remus, she asked Harry to join her in the garden.
y way walked to the rose garden in silence. When they entered the ever blooming fragrant patch of floral beauty, Hermione turned to Harry.

“Harry, Ited ted to tell you before you heard from anyone else…”

“I saw the ring, Hermione, you’re engaged to marry Severus,” he interrupted.

“Yes, I am,” stated Hermione, chewing on her lower lip.

“It’s OK,” he said, “I won’t insult you by pretending to be thrilled, but I know how happy you are with him and how happy you make him. I’ve said it before and I will say it again, I’ll be fine. We both need to move on.”

“What about Ginny?”

“What about Ginny?”

“I noticed you looking at her. She is a grown up now, you know,” teased Hermione.

“Yes, yes she is,” replied Harry, “and she’s another woman who wants a career before children, I would imagine.”

“I can’t answer that,” said Hermione, “but wharmharm could dinner do?”

Harry shrugged his shoulders and gave Hermione a glance, “Matchmaking, are we?”

“Not me,” stated Hermione, “I would never match make, merely suggest.”

“I’ll take your suggestion under consideration. Now, I have to meet with Albus and find out how he wants to go about putting together the pieces of Remus’ disappearance,” said Harry, giving Hermione a quick peck on the cheek before heading into the castle.

Hermione took some time and walked around the garden, smelling all the roses and admiring their perfect beauty. She walked towards the back of the garden where she smelled the familiar Cinnamon Rose scent of the roses Severus always gave her, the same ones he left each year on the graves of her parents. She looked down at the small placard that stated the name and breeder of each rose. The majority was bred by Pomona Sprout. As she looked at the placard, she felt a gasp build up. The placard read:

“Hermione’s Cinnamon Rose. Bred 1998 by Severus Snape. In honor of a young woman of enormous talent and courage under fire. May she succeed where others have failed…” and in handwritten letters underneath, “even though she is an annoying know-it-all and I welcome the peace her departure will bring.”