The Night of the Full Moon

Chapter 2 The Amoro Potion

Tentatively, Remus opened his eyes. His vision was blurred and the pain in his stomach was intense.

He groaned and looked around; he was in the hospital wing. Hermione, I mean Miss Granger, he corrected himself, lay in the bed next to his, still unconscious.

As soon as he glanced at her, his stomach began to fill with a thousand butterflies and his pulse began to race. Her long eyelashes fluttered and she turned to face him, still asleep. My, how she has changed, he thought to himself, her hair, no longer frizzy and untamed, fell about her face in soft brown curls, her lips were full and red and her body....

Remus! His conscience screamed WHAT ARE YOU DOING? You're just tired and overworked; you don't know what you're saying.... He drifted back into sleep.

"Remus, Remus, REMUS!"

Remus woke with a start to find Madam Pomfrey shaking him, her hands on his shoulders.

"Wake up, Remus," she said, her voice quieter but still with a harsh tone.

"What? Where? Who?" He mumbled.

He suddenly remembered what had happened in the classroom. What if Hermione was hurt, what if she was ...DEAD! He felt his stomach twist almost involuntarily and beads of perspiration began to form on his brow.

"HERMIONE," he screamed as he struggled against Madam Pomfrey's strong grip.

"Hermione's fine, Remus. Calm down!"

Strange, thought Madam Pomfrey, he's usually so calm, like a stoic. I don't think I've ever seen him this upset in my life, even when he discovered.... She shuddered involuntarily, old memories flooding back to her.

Hermione awoke to find Remus sitting at the end of her bed, watching her. She blushed deep scarlet and sat up. The pain was still intense, but it was bearable. Especially when he's here, she thought. NO, what are you thinking? He's your Professor. Get a hold of yourself, Hermione.

"Hello, Hermione," he whispered, smiling and put his hand on her.

A bolt of electricity coursed through Hermione's body. Did he feel that too? She wondered.

Hermione blushed again and felt an urgent need to kiss him, to embrace him in her arms. She tried to fight it, but it was too powerful.

"Why is it so damn powerful?" she thought out loud.

"What, Hermione?"

She felt herself blush deeper and quickly changed the subject.

"What happened to us? I mean... in the classroom," she asked.

"To be honest, I don't know, but I have a feeling that the potion I drank wasn't wolfsbane," he said, glad of the conversation. It would keep his mind off...other things.

At this point, they were interrupted by Madam Pomfrey.

"You're right, Remus. You were affected by some kind of potion. I have carried out extensive tests and narrowed it down to two options. And seeing as you aren't covered in boils, I'm beginning to think it's the other one. Right, Hermione, I'd like you to do something for me."

"Su-sure" Hermione replied, confused.

"Look into Remus' eyes."

"W-what?" Hermione asked, confused and slightly afraid of what she might do if she got too close to him.

"Don't you understand me, child? Look into his eyes."

Tentatively, Hermione glanced up into his warm, amber eyes. They had flicks of gold and a rim of gold around them. They suited his personality perfectly. It struck her that these were the most beautiful pair of eyes she had ever seen.

"Now Hermione, tell me truthfully. How do you feel when you look into his eyes?"

"Honestly," Hermione reddened, "I feel as if I will die unless I feel his lips on mine!"

Now it was Remus' turn to blush.

"Ummmm," Madam Pomfrey said, taking notes.

Hermione was outraged. She had just revealed her deepest feelings and she was treating it like a clinical trail!

"I've got good news and bad news," Madam Pomfrey began matter-of-factly. "The good news is that there is nothing physically wrong with you and Hermione."

Hermione noticed her emphasis on 'physically' and wondered what she meant.

"The bad news is that you've both been affected by the Amoro potion."

Remus gasped, unable to hide his shock. The Amoro potion? No, it couldn't be. Could it?

Hermione looked at him, confused.

"The Amoro potion? I've never heard of that before."

"Probably because it's Dark magic," Remus explained, "the Amoro potion is basically a type of love potion. The first person that the drinker looks at after taking the potion becomes their beloved. Or so the legend goes...But I thought that no one had the knowledge to make it anymore. Obviously I was wrong," he said gravely.

Hermione's head was spinning. A love potion? How? Did this mean that Re- Professor Lupin...loved her? A small smile escaped her lips and those all-too-familiar butterflies reappeared.

Draco watched the scene through the window. Madam Pomfrey had just told the werewolf and Granger something and was now doing some paperwork in her office. The werewolf was sitting at the end of his bed, looking confused and thoughtful, but it was Granger's expression that puzzled him the most.

She looked... happy. Great, thought Draco sarcastically, I go out of my way to make Granger's life a misery and I ended up playing matchmaker between a werewolf and a mudblood. And I so wanted to see her grovel at my feet... he thought wistfully.

"Oh well, there's always Plan B," he said to himself, a small smirk escaping his lips. "Perhaps, I'll see Granger grovelling at my feet after all."