A/N: I have a little secret I'm not the owner of Harry Potter and if I was Lupin and Fred would be alive and Hermione would've ended up with one of them.
June 1999
Remus exhaled. He'd waited eight long months to see her again. He knew she had disappeared in the middle of her final year. She had everyone worried everyone besides him and Sirius. They knew where one Hermione Granger had been since Halloween 1998. All thanks to one miraculous little box. He sighed, and looked up, he spotted a familiar curly haired witch running to him. Fire in her eyes. Shit this isn't going to go well.
"YOU!" Hermione spat, pulling off one of the stillettoes Lily had forced her to buy weeks ago. She studied the dangerously spiked shoe, before throwing it at Remus. "You bloody bastard. You knew. I am going to murder you."
The shoe hit Remus in the left arm. He winced. The witch had a strong arm. "I'd rather hear you say you missed me," he replied, trying to diffuse the bomb that was Hermione Granger's temper.
"Missed you? It might have been twenty years for you but its only been a few hours for me." She took off her other shoe and threw it at him. This time he caught it. "I hate you."
"No you don't. You and I both know better than that," Remus replied.
"I never want to see you again," she snapped.
"We live in the same house Hermione," he pointed out.
"I might have to change that," she stated, crossing her arms.
Sirius made his way over to the arguing couple. "Hey you're back." He moved in to hug her.
Hermione turned on Sirius. "I like you better as a dog. You're in the same boat he's in." She pointed at Remus.
Sirius held up his hands in surrender. "I'm sorry kitten."
Hermione looked at her two friends, before dropping to her knees. The floral printed dress pooled around her, as she buried her face in her hands and started to sob. Remus sighed, as he studied her. He knew better than to touch herher. Sirius knelt down beside Hermione.
"Shhh. You're home now and everyone missed you," Sirius said, as he pulled the young woman to him. "Moony missed you. I missed you."
Hermione looked up at Remus. "Let me be mad at you. I just got ripped away from you, and it hurts. Your pain is twenty years old. Mine isn't."
Remus sighed, "That doesn't make it any less. Just because its older."
"I loved you before I left here Remus. I loved you when I left there. I don't know how I feel now," Hermione murmured as Remus helped her stand.
He held out her shoes. She took them and slipped them back on. "I should've thanked Lily for those," he whispered.
"I did. They make handy weapons," she laughed.
Remus groaned. "You're killing me woman."
"Time I need time. Let me morn what I've lost and sort out what I've gained back. I'll come to you," she vowed, "Now I'd like to go home."
"Let's find the others, and we'll go back to Grimmuald," he said.
"I need to talk to Minerva, I'll floo back." Hermione brushed his cheek with her hand. "Remus."
His green eyes met hers. "I still do Hermione."
She nodded once, tears in her eyes. "I still do too." She pulled a box out of her ever present beaded bag. "This belongs to you." She put it in his hands.
Remus ran his hands over the well worn wood. "I think we need to burn these."
"Probably best," she replied, turning to find Minerva.
Remus watched her go, again. He sighed and looked at the box she handed him. The thing that started this all. He lifted the lid. All of their letters were in it, besides an unfamiliar one on top. He shrunk the box after taking the letter out. He smiled at her handwriting. The second to last letter. He had one for her too.
Hermione wandered the castle. Looking for McGonagall. Her heart broke with each step; knowing she'd never see Lily, James, Marlene, Alice, and Frank again shattered her piece by piece. She collapsed onto her knees again, sobbing. She missed her friends.
She leaned up against the stone wall. "Do I really belong here? I know I belong with them," she whispered.
You belong with us. It doesn't matter where or when you're from Hermione. Remus loves you and so do we. You're my best friend, no one else could understand this insanity we've landed ourselves in by loving these men like we do. I love you Hermione. Lily's last words rang in her ears, as she wiped her eyes. She stood back up and made her way to Minerva's office, stopping occasionally to cry. She couldn't believe her fresh memories were actually twenty years old.
She whispered the password Minerva had passed her earlier. The gargoyle moved and the staircase started to rise; Hermione jumped onto the top stair and rode the staircase up.
Minerva was sitting down to tea. "Hello Hermione. I'd love to say I've missed you this year, but I've already had you." She smiled at Hermione. "Tea?" She paused for a moment. "Oh we've already had tea today."
"Two won't hurt." Hermione sat beside her professor.
"How are you feeling?" Minerva asked.
"Do I really belong here?" Hermione replied.
"Are you ready to take the duties you wanted in the seventies?" Minerva poured Hermione tea.
"Are you asking me if I'm ready to be his mate?" Hermione took her tea.
"That's exactly what I'm asking." Minerva took a scone.
"I love him. I loved him before this. I'll love him even if he doesn't want me. I just want to heal," Hermione replied, "Am I ready? Yes. Do I want the man I knew? Yes. Do I want the man I have? Yes. Can I build a bridge to connect the two? I hope so." Hermione stood up. "I just want to go home."
Minerva waved towards the fireplace. "I'll call on you in a week. So that we can talk about the position you requested twenty years ago."
Hermione gave a quick nod, before going to the fireplace. "Number Twelve Grimmuald Place." She tossed in a healthy amount of floor powder.
Ginny Weasley was pacing back and forth in front of the drawing room fireplace at Grimmuald. Hermione landed rather gracelessly. Ginny looked down at her. "About bloody time. You appear out of no where after eight months and attack Remus, then bolt off. What the hell? You look like you just came from the seventies."
Hermione sighed. "Oh do I have a story for you."
"Then start."
Ron and Harry ran in to see what the commotion was about. Ron stopped the minute he saw Hermione. She looked different. She looked beautiful, the heartache he'd felt since she vanished disappeared the second he saw her. He was in love with his best friend.
Harry picked her up and spun her around. "Welcome home Mione! Where have you been? Are you okay?"
Hermione kissed his cheek once he sat her back down. "That's a long story. I'll be okay. Merlin I missed you lot." She studied her surroundings. "This place looks good." Her eyes landed on Ronald. "I'm not a hallucination. I promise."
Ron slowly took the ten steps to her. He put his hands on both sides of her face, pulling her into a passionate one sided kiss. Hermione pushed him off of her, "Get off."
Ron looked at her. "I love you Mione."
Hermione sighed. "Ronald just let me be." She faced Ginny. "I'll talk to you after dinner. I need a nap." She headed up stairs to the library where she knew he would be. She slipped inside.
Remus was on the far settee. He looked up at her. Her eyes had the same determination in them that they had the night she crossed the Common room and kissed him the first time. She had the same distinct movements as she walked over to him.
"Are you still mad?" He closed his book.
She sat beside him, the determination gone instantly. "I want you. I want you so much it hurts. I'm sorry for the pain. I'm sorry I left you when you needed me most. I don't know if I belong here with you or back there with you. I know two things, one I belong with you, and that I love you Remus Lupin."
He took a deep breath. "I've waited a long time to hear you say that again."
"I hate this Remus. I don't get to suffer like you did. I'm sorry our good bye was that way." She buried her face in her hands sobbing again.
Remus pulled her onto his lap. "Its meant to be this way. I had to have faith that you would come running back to me. You needed to trust that I wouldn't put something out there to stop us. Two different types of trust we needed to build. I love you, too Hermione."
"I know that. I've known for along time. I'm glad I didn't kiss Sirius." She smiled at him through her tears.
"Love, that wasn't a simple kiss. That was mind numbing." He kissed the top of her head. "What's next love?"
She leaned up against him. "A nap. Time travel is exhausting. I'll never look at Doctor Who the same way again."
"Well Doctor you did an amazing job. You taught a young man a very valuable lesson. Thank you. I owe you my life Hermione Granger," he said.
"You owe me nothing, besides maybe some serious spooning. I miss spooning. I didn't get to enjoy a final night with you." She straddled him. "Does it feel like it's been as long as it has been for you?"
He ran his hands from her shoulders to her hips. "Yes, when I look at that dress and know Lily made you buy it for our first date. No, because you're the same. You're in the same dress you left me in. You're still beautiful, you're always beautiful. You are my girl. Your future was the past."
She rested her forehead against his. "I missed this you. In your almost fourty year old glory. You're a wonderful man Remus. You were a wonderful young man too. I think that makes me love you, this you, more because I got to have eighteen year old you too."
He exhaled. "Let's get you to your room. You need to rest. I'm going to let you heal. For the both of us before we start again."
She slid off his lap, and pulled him up with her. "I just want to burry myself for a few hours. Ron just kissed me, and told me he loved me and a year ago I would've thought about pushing my feelings for you aside. Now, now I can't do that."
Remus kissed her cheek. "Go to sleep. I'll be in to check on you in a bit. Go to my room. No one will bother you there."
She nodded once, before heading up to the third floor and Remus' room. She stepped into the brown and gold bedroom sighing as she closed the door. She still didn't know if she was home or if 1978 was home.
Hermione crossed the room and landed face first onto the king sized bed, with the earth brown duvet. She inhaled, breathing in pure Remus. She smiled, as she made her way to the head of the bed. She rested her head on the feather pillow, falling asleep instantly.
Remus checked in on Hermione an hour or so later. He smiled. God I've missed you. He grabbed the second book he was reading and settled into his chair, staying with her. She snored softly. He'd missed that noise. The sound of contentment.
Remus put his feet up on the ottoman. A sharp object from his trouser pocket jabbed him. He pulled out the box Hermione gave him. He sighed. This tiny box caused more trouble than he ever wanted to admit. But he gave him the love of his life. He traced the patterns on the box, silently thanking it for the witch on his bed asleep.
He opened the letter on top, smiling at Hermione's hand writing.
My dearest Remus,
I love you. I've enjoyed my time with you. I'll get to give this to you in person. Twenty years from now. I can't wrap my head around that still. I have something with you. Something I never imagined and I want to try to continue it once my head is back in the nineties. Give me time to heal. Our loses are fresh to me, because they're fresh in my mind. I wish I could give Sirius Marlene. I've never seen him happier. He vowed to never fall in love again didn't he? I don't know who got it worse you who had to watch me go and leave you at nineteen knowing I'd have to be born and grown before I could be yours at any point in time. And even then my wanting you still was never a given. Or Sirius knowing he can never have her in his arms again. Knowing she's been gone longer than he was ever able to love her.
I love you. I loved you before I even knew what love was, something shifted for me when I saw you that first day. I think I knew what my future held. I knew. So did you. I hope I've crossed your mind every day since I left you. I hope you still love me like I love you.
Yours,
Hermione
Remus sat the letter down. "I still do," he whispered, before going over to her. He stroked her hair, and bare shoulder. "You beautiful woman. You brave brave girl."
Remus kissed her hair, breathing in the scent that was strictly Hermione. He took another deep breath, honey, Earl Grey tea, citrus and peonies. He missed being this close to her. Remus went back to his book his mind on how this all began.
A/N: I know that the beginning can be considered the ending, but it's not. Chapters up until Hermione lands in October 1977 will be divided between Hermione's seventh year and Remus'. With maybe a bit of her re-adjustment in 1999 thrown in for fun. I know that they're a bit OOC but forgive me. This is rated M for future smut.