By the Light of the Moon

By the Light of the Moon: EPILOGUE

Amera stared into his golden eyes streaked with gray; more wolf than human. She stroked his face. Together, they waited.

"You know," she whispered, not sure if Remus the man would remember this conversation, "Sirius made me promise to watch over you if anything happened to him. He also made me promise never to leave you alone on a full moon."

She leaned over to kiss him, but he only kissed her briefly before pushing her away. She knew he was nervous. She'd never been in the cage during his transformation before. She promised to transform herself as soon as any sign of his own transformation began. She watched him carefully as he closed his eyes momentarily, pain scrawled across his face.

"You don't have to be alone anymore, Remus. I love you. All of you."

His eyes met hers only briefly before nodding to her. On his signal, she transformed.

She watched in confusion through the she-wolf's eyes as the man in front of her changed into her mate. The she-wolf had no concept of man and wolf, the she-wolf only knew the he-wolf. When her mate emerged, they sniffed each other eagerly, reestablishing the bond between themselves. Recognition turned to play as they frolicked around the cage that had been expanded to take up the entire room. She'd never seen the wolf so free, so uninhibited. It was exhilarating. She kept just enough of her human presence with her to observe their interactions. Ever the scholar, the human part of her laughed. But then the frolicking shifted, turning into more ritualized behavior. He was dancing around her, stalking her across the room. The she-wolf was leading him on, raising her tail, giving him permission. As the mating ritual continued, Amera the human began to feel less comfortable about observing such an intimate moment. Taking a deep breath, she stepped back and let nature take its course.

When she awoke in the morning, she remembered only bits and pieces of the night before. Odd, she thought. She remembered frolicking with him and sleeping curled up next him. But something was missing. As she pondered this, she heard his voice, gruff and edged with exhaustion.

"We mated, didn't we?"

"How do you know?"

"Because I'm absolutely exhausted." But he was smiling as he looked at her.

She brushed the hair from his face, studying him with love in her eyes.

"So what was it like? You had the luxury of being there. In the she-wolf's mind, I mean."

A slight blush crept up her cheeks. "Actually, I think I left for that part."

"Really, how come?"

"I can't say for sure, but if I had to guess, I didn't want to intrude on such a private moment."

"Hmm..." he said, stroking her face, "I guess we'll never know. At least not how the wolves do it anyway. But I must say, I'm quite satisfied with how we make love."

She leaned over and kissed him. Sighing gently she watched as his eyelids slid shut, sleep overtaking him.

"I love you Remus," she whispered.

"I love you too."