Disclaimer: This is the last time I will have to say this, well for this fic at least...I do not own anything belonging to the delightful JKR or the equally delightful Bonnie Raitt. Oh yea, the same goes for Lonestar.
Here you go folks...'tis the end of the road for this story. Woohoo! I actually met the deadline! Granted, it was the extended deadline, but still, I did it...okay, fine, you don't have to be as happy and impressed as I am...
Thank you all so much for reading this fic and thank you even more to those of you who left me all the wonderful reviews.
I hope you enjoy this...I will warn you that it is fluffy, but that is the way I like my endings...ah, hopeless romanticism is great...Oh, I meant for this to be shorter than the other chapters, but it just did not want to end...
Let's give 'em something to talk about
A little mystery to figure out
Let's give 'em something to talk about
How about love?
--Something to Talk About by Bonnie Raitt
Epilogue
Something to talk about...
The day of the Trio's graduation dawned warm and bright and stayed that way through the morning, making an outdoor ceremony possible. As the house elves set up the chairs and stage on the grounds for the ceremony, Remus was in his room, talking to himself in the mirror.
"Are you sure you are ready for this, old man?" Remus asked his reflection as he ran a hand through his sandy brown hair that was peppered with more greys than he could count. "What if she says no? What then?"
He stared at his reflection as if waiting for it to answer that question on its own. When it didn't, he sighed and turned away from the mirror. "I guess we will cross that bridge when we get to it, eh?"
Remus finished getting himself ready for the day, donning his most dressy teaching robes, before he left for the Great Hall. As he walked down the hall, his right hand patted the pocket over his heart, making sure that the tiny box was still there. It was.
The Great Hall was crowded and noisy as per usual during the hour of lunch. Remus took his seat next to Minerva McGonagall and nodded a greeting to Minerva and the Headmaster.
"Big day today, my boy. Do you have everything in order?" Albus asked with that ever-present twinkle in his eye.
Remus flushed at the meaning behind the Headmaster's words...he knew that Albus was aware of his 'relationship' with Hermione, or at least he thought that Albus was aware after that meeting many months ago when Hermione told the Headmaster of her condition. But still, having Albus mention something on this day of all days was just too much.
He could not possibly know what I have planned? Remus just shook his head and focused on the food before him, leaving Albus to chuckle at his refusal to answer the question.
"Ah, well I hope you do. I have arranged for an End of the Year Dance to take place this evening after the ceremony and I think it would be a fine opportunity to complete what you no doubt have planned."
Grr, that man is insufferable! Can he hint a little more to the fact that he is omniscient? Wait a second...does that mean that I can ask Hermione to be my date, since she will no longer be a student at that point?
Remus glared at the Headmaster as the old man turned his attention to the crowd of students and called the Hall to silence.
"My dear students, I am pleased to announce that I have arranged for an end of the year dance this evening after the seventh years' graduation ceremony. Everyone is invited and the dress will be casual, not fancy, so do not fuss over your attire too much."
The Great Hall erupted into talk about the dance with cries and complaints from many girls over the lack of notice. How ever would they find something to wear in time?
Remus ate his lunch in silence, only answering the occasional question aimed at him, and watched his love as she shared her last lunch at Hogwarts with her friends. She looked radiant and happy, ready to take that next step out into the world.
She told him last night, as they walked around the lake under the light of the quarter moon, that she would miss being a student greatly, but she was quite ready to officially move into adulthood. They talked about what she planned to do after this day, whether she still wanted to be professor or if she decided to try her hand at something else.
Remus knew that he would support her in any decision she made, but he could not even help the relief and elation he felt when Hermione told him that she still planned to teach. Apparently, Albus informed her earlier that day that her assistantship under Remus' guidance was considered credit toward an apprenticeship and she need only complete one full year of supervised training before she would be considered a professor.
Remus was delighted and told her that he would be pleased if she would continue on as his apprentice. Naturally, she accepted and her fate was set for the next year of her life.
Remus shook his head to clear his mind of the memories of last night as people emptied out of the hall. He stood from his seat and walked down to the Gryffindor table to congratulate his favourite students on their achievements before they were lost in the chaos that was to be the graduation ceremony.
"Congratulations you three! Are you excited to be moving on?" Remus asked the Trio merrily.
"Thanks, Professor Lupin! I don't know about these two, but I am ready for that next step," Hermione said, as she was the only one without food in her mouth at the moment.
Remus laughed as he bent down and said, "I think it would be okay for you to call me Remus in public at this point, Mione." Remus stood up straight and focused his gaze on the boys, who were finally finished chewing.
"Oh, we are very happy to be moving on. I think one more potions class with Snape would have been the death of me!" Ron exclaimed dramatically, causing the other three to laugh.
It was then that Remus realized he had no idea what the boys were planning to do now that their time at Hogwarts was over. "What are you boys planning to do now?" Remus asked as he sat down next to Hermione and across from the boys.
"We were both accepted into Auror school and we leave for training at the end of August," Harry said proudly as Ron nodded his head enthusiastically.
"Good for you boys! I am quite proud of you! Has Hermione informed you of what she will be doing come September?"
"Yes, she told us at breakfast. We are proud of her and we know that she will love teaching," Ron said with a fond smile at his best friend.
Remus inquired about the dance and who the boys would be bringing as their dates. Ron was going to ask Luna and he decided that he better do it now before someone else beat him to it, however unlikely that was. Harry would be going with Parvati, as she was the first girl to ask him, only moments after Dumbledore made the announcement. He wanted to go with Ginny, but he knew that she was not at all interested.
"What about you, Remus? Are you going with anyone?" Harry asked with a mischievous glint in his eye. Harry was steadily becoming more comfortable with the idea of Hermione and Remus being together...he could just about say that he was happy for them.
Remus chuckled nervously and turned to look at Hermione. "I was hoping that Mione would consent to being my date for the evening."
Hermione was surprised and blushed. "Are you sure that would be okay? I don't want to cause you any trouble..."
Remus smiled and stopped Hermione from continuing. "I am positive and you will not cause me any trouble. Remember, you will no longer be a student once the ceremony is over, we can do whatever we want after that."
Hermione smiled and consented to being his date. "I will meet you at your rooms at 7 o'clock, does that sound good?" Hermione nodded as Remus smiled and bid farewell to the two soon-to-be former students. The ceremony would be starting shortly and everyone needed to be out on the grounds to prepare, so Harry and Hermione quickly rounded up Ron and made their way out to the grounds.
The ceremony itself was long and tedious, as most graduation ceremonies are – full of long speeches and waiting for one's name to be called, only to sit once again and wait while everyone else's name is called. Both Remus and Hermione were of the same thought that the magical world would have somehow manage to found a way to speed things up by now. Apparently not.
Once the ceremony was over, all the girls ran for their dormitories to ready themselves for the dance. Hermione was lucky enough to have her own rooms with her own private bath, so she was able to get ready in a more relaxing manner than the other girls.
After she finished primping herself, Hermione occupied herself with daydreams of her future – working at Hogwarts, sharing a future with Remus. She was still unsure what Remus' thoughts of the future were – they never discussed it, but he loved her so she assumed that what they had was meaningful and lasting. She knew that she would have to ask him as some point, especially since she still did not know what she was going to do for the summer.
Ron offered for her to stay at the Burrow with his family, and Harry offered for her to stay at Grimmauld Place, once they learned that she was not welcome at her parents house any more. They felt terrible for their friend – she suffered so much this year and now she was essentially homeless. For her part, Hermione thanked both of them, but she let them know that she wanted to wait and see if Remus had any thoughts on the matter.
Hermione shook herself from her thoughts to see that it was nearly 7 o'clock and promptly checked herself in the mirror to make sure that she still looked okay. Remus knocked on her door at two minutes to 7 and bowed when she opened the door. Hermione ushered him into the room and shut the door before she turned to admire him.
He was wearing tan pressed slacks and a light brown short-sleeve button down shirt. His fringe hung in his eyes and gave him a youthful look that Hermione found very appealing. He smelled like the forest after rain – clean, fresh, and decidedly natural. Hermione breathed in his scent and sighed as he kissed her in greeting.
"You look beautiful, Mione," he whispered as he nuzzled her neck.
She was wearing a brown fitted skirt with a tan and brown argyle sweater vest and her brown hair flowed down her back in loose curls. She looked beautiful in a very natural and understated way.
"We match," Hermione breathed and Remus chuckled.
"Yes, we do. People will think that we planned this." He replied as he reached for her hand. "Are you ready to give everyone something to talk about?"
The Great Hall was sparsely decorated, the enchanted ceiling and some well-placed candles creating the ambiance of a cool summer night. Small round tables were placed around the perimeter of the Hall and a stage was set up next to the Head Table. A popular wizarding band, Smashing Pumpkin Pasties, was on stage playing a fast tune and the dance floor was crowded.
The students were all dressed in their casual best, though a few girls, such as Lavender and the Patil twins, were dressed a touch more formally, much to the chagrin of their decidedly under-dressed dates.
It seemed as though time stopped as Hermione and Remus passed through the open double doors of the Great Hall hand-in-hand. Although the band continued playing, everyone stopped dancing and all heads in the room turned to see who walked through the door. The rumble of gossip was barely heard above the music, and Hermione could see many heads bent together, no doubt discussing why Hermione Granger and Professor Lupin were holding hands.
Remus tried to ignore the petty gossip that was making its way through the Hall and focused on the Head Table. He caught the Headmaster's eye and knew, by the twinkle in his eye and the knowing smile on his face, that the old man expected them to arrive together. Remus nodded to the old man and turned back to his date.
He met Hermione's eyes and they smiled at each other. "What do you say we find a table, maybe a private one in a corner somewhere?"
Hermione laughed softly and followed Remus through the Hall in search of an open table. There were no 'private one in a corner' left; they were all being occupied by overzealous young couples bent on snogging when no one was looking. The couple at the last table they passed in the darkest corner of the Hall was busted by Snape just after Remus and Hermione walked by. Unfortunately, Snape did not make the couple find another place to snog, so Remus and Hermione continued on in their search.
When, at last, it seemed all of the tables were occupied, Hermione spotted Ginny sitting at one by herself. She pointed Remus in the direction of Ginny's table and the two of them made their way over to the solitary redhead.
"Evening, Miss Weasley," Remus said once they were standing in front of her table.
The redhead looked up at the sound of Remus' voice and beamed at her best friend and her favourite professor. "Hullo, Professor. 'Lo, Mione. Would you two care to join me?"
Hermione smiled at her friend and sat next to her. Remus sat next to Hermione, leaving the seat between him and Ginny open.
"Did you come to the dance alone, Gin?" Hermione asked her friend as she tried to subtly locate Draco Malfoy. She could not find him in the crowd and quickly turned her attention back to her friend.
"No, I came with a date. He's just getting some refreshments."
At the mention of refreshments, Remus stood up and made his way to the refreshments table, leaving Hermione and Ginny to their 'girl talk'.
Hermione noticed the fact that Ginny did not mention who her 'date' was, but she did not say anything. She had a feeling that tonight was a coming out for Ginny just as it was Hermione. The world of Hogwarts got another surprise tonight if Ginny arrived with who Hermione suspected she did.
"I see that you and Remus arrived together; quite the entrance you two made, every pair of eyes in the room were on you for a few solid minutes."
Hermione snorted and shook her head. "Yes, we should have expected that kind of reaction from everyone seeing a student – er, former student – and a professor arrive at a dance together. But still, it was a bit disconcerting."
Remus came back with two goblets and a plate of food to find the girls giggling over some of the other 'couples' who arrived to the dance together. They seemed particularly surprised with one couple – Pansy Parkinson and Colin Creevey – who knew she like younger men. Moments after Remus returned to the table, Hermione was not surprised to see Draco approach with two goblets of pumpkin juice and a plate of food.
"Sorry I took so long, love. I could not get away from Blaise; he wanted to talk about some nonsense regarding his ex-girlfriend..." Draco hesitated when he looked up to see the other two people sitting at the table with his girlfriend. "Oh, good evening, Professor. Hullo, Granger. I didn't know you would be joining us."
Draco set one of the goblets in front of Ginny as he took his seat next to her. "Thank you, Drake. I asked them to sit with us, I hope you don't mind, Hermione is my best friend after all.."
Draco looked unsure as he glanced between Professor Lupin and Hermione, as if he was trying to figure out what was going on and if it was safe to act normal in front of them. Hermione noticed the look he was giving them and decided to make him feel a little less unsure. "I already know about you two. I have for months, in fact."
"Right. What about you two? Are you together?" Draco asked in the least offensive manner Hermione ever heard from him. She could not help but chuckle at this and she nodded her head. "Ah, so Granger was shagging a professor, who would have thought that?"
Remus shot Draco a warning look and Draco raised his hands up in a sign of surrender. "I was only joking, Professor. No offence intended."
The foursome moved into easy conversation as the two couple got more comfortable with each other. Neither couple moved to dance for a while as they were too absorbed in friendly chatting. They snacked on some of the party food and watched the many other couples cutting a rug on the dance floor.
When the dance was more than half way through, Remus grew tired of just watching everyone else dance.
"Would you care to dance my love?"
"I would love to."
Remus led Hermione onto the dance floor just in time for the start of a slow song. The couple moved to the centre of the floor and stood close as they swayed to the music. Remus did not worry about being 'appropriate' and Remus wrapped his arms tight around Hermione's waist as he held her as close to him as possible.
Hermione rested her head against Remus' shoulder as she let the soft sounds of the band flow through her. She shuddered when Remus began to sing the words of the song in a low whisper against her temple.
I don't know how you do what you do
I'm so in love with you
It just keeps getting better
I want to spend the rest of my life
With you by my side
Forever and ever
Every little thing that you do
Baby, I'm amazed by you
Hermione felt the tears well up as she listened to the words Remus was singing. They touched her heart and she tightened her hold on Remus in an effort to fuse their souls.
Remus knew this was the perfect moment for what he planned to do tonight and the song kept playing as he pulled back from Hermione. She looked up at him, worry and confusion in her eyes as she was unsure of why he stepped away. Her hands dropped from his neck but she still reach out for him with her left hand. He smiled at her as he shook his head and reached for the pocket over his heart.
Hermione watched as he pulled a very small item from his pocket while his other hand withdrew his wand from his pants pocket. She continued to watch as Remus charmed the item back to its original size, but she could not discern what the item was as he wrapped his hand around it.
Everything around them seemed to disappear as Remus bent down on one knee in the middle of the dance floor and fiddled with the item in his hand. Hermione felt the tears that gathered in her eyes earlier start to flow down her face as she realized what he was doing when he opened the small box that he held out in front of him. Oh Merlin!
"Remus..." Hermione breathed as she took in the sight of the square cut diamond set on a platinum ring. That is the most beautiful I have ever seen!
"Hermione, I know that we have not been together all that long in the grand scheme of things, but we have been through so much together and we have known each other for several years. I love you more than anything else in the world and I don't ever want to be without you. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me or that will ever happen to me. Please say that you want to spend the rest of your life with me, that you want to be my wife..."
Tears were pouring down her face as she listened to what Remus was saying. She never heard more romantic words and yet she could not bring herself to say anything to the man kneeling before her. She just glanced back and forth between the ring and him, her mind in shock over the whole situation. He wants to marry me? He really wants to marry me?
The longer Remus waited for Hermione's answer, the more he started to feel like a right fool for thinking that this beautiful young woman would want to spend her life attached to an old man like him. I should have known better than to do this in public, but it just seemed like the perfect moment! I should have known that I would come out looking like a fool for asking her in public. At least if we were alone, it would not be so embarrassing if she said no!
He bowed his head as he felt his own eyes become distinctly wet. It was then that he noticed the absolute silence that filled the Hall. It was suffocating to him and he wanted nothing more than to melt into the floor. Why won't she just say something? Anything? If she would just hurry and say no, I could get the bloody hell out of here!
Hermione's brain was jolted into action as she watched Remus bow his head. It was only then that she realized she had yet to speak. She also realized that the music stopped and she looked up to see every eye on her and Remus for the second time that night. She felt frozen under the weight of all those stares and the silence seemed to affect her ability to breath – she could not even force her lungs to take in air, she was so frozen. She tried to mentally shake herself and she turned back to Remus just as he was standing up.
"I'm sorry, Hermione. I shouldn't have brought this up now. Forgive me," Remus choked the words out and he quickly turned away, not seeing the dawning flash in Hermione eyes. He started to walk away when Hermione grabbed his hand and made him turn around. He refused to meet her eyes, though.
"No, Remus, I am sorry. I was just so...shocked...that I froze. Don't leave, please," Hermione pleaded.
"Mione, if you don't want to marry me, just say so, that way I can leave with at least a modicum of my dignity in tact. Please." He still would not meet her eyes. He couldn't; he was afraid of her seeing his wet eyes. He was even more afraid of what he might see there in her eyes.
"You thought that I was going to say no?"
"Well, when you did not give me an answer after a solid five minutes – which were the longest five minutes of my life, I might add – I figured that you were disgusted at the very idea of spending your life with me and did not know how to let me down easy," Remus said bitterly.
"Oh...oh, no...I am so sorry, Remus. I did not mean to leave you hanging like that. I was just so surprised that I freaked and my brain took leave of my body for a few minutes." This got a little laugh out of Remus and Hermione smiled. "Make no mistake, Remus Lupin, I want nothing more than to spend my life with you."
Remus finally looked up at the love of his life, surprise written all over his face. "You do?"
"Yes, I do. Now kiss me, love," Hermione smiled as she stepped closer to Remus and reached up to kiss him. The Hall exploded with cheers and the lead singer of the band shouted a "Congratulations!" with his charmed voice.
Hermione and Remus kissed as the band started playing another slow song and Remus slid the ring onto her finger when they started dancing.
"I love you, Mione. I love you so much that it nearly killed me when I thought you were going to say no to me."
"I love you, Remus. I could never say no to you."
This was the happiest moment of his life and he never wanted it to end.
As he danced with his fiancée and held her tight, Remus thanked the fates for bringing Hermione into his life.. After so many years of hurt and heartache, he was truly looking forward to the lifetime of happiness that he would have with Hermione at his side.
- FIN -
The song that Remus sang to Hermione is "Amazed" by Lonestar...beautiful song - if I ever get married, that will be my wedding song. I fell in love withthat songwhen I first heard it six or seven years ago and I knew instantly that would be my wedding song.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this fic! I certainly enjoyed writing it! Thank you to Lady Acacia for proposing the challenge - my first completed story is dedicated to you, since you were the one who challenged me to write it!
A big thank you to all the readers and a bigger thank you to all of the wonderful reviewers!