the_debt_of_time

transforming back to his human state, the wolf might linger beneath the surface. There was no way to tell
what the lack of the Wolfsbane Potion would do.
"Remus?" Hermione whispered as she approached the open door of the cage.
Remus's eyes, she was surprised to see, were golden as he deigned to register her presence. When he
made eye contact with her, he growled low and dangerous.
Padfoot, instantly awake, snarled in warning.
Hermione looked over her shoulder at the dog before returning her attention to Remus. She kept
her distance and knelt on the floor without making any sudden movements. "Tonks, roll him the phial of
Calming Draught. He's Remus, but the wolf is still on edge. The draught should bring him down," she
explained and watched carefully as Tonks pulled a small phial out of the bag that Hermione prepared,
rolling it forward to Remus, who stared down at it.
"Remus, take the potion," Hermione instructed, tilting her head to the side and exposing her neck
as a sign of submission.
His lupine eyes appeared to glow for a moment at the sight before changing to the usual soft green
irises. He let out a wince of pain and reached immediately for the phial, tipping its contents down his throat,
coughing, and then collapsing on the ground.
"Hold him while I tend to his back," Hermione said to Tonks as they both moved swiftly into the
cage and over to Remus's body.
"Hello, love." Tonks sat down by his head, stroking her fingers through his sweat-soaked hair and
pulling gently on his shoulders to show the fresh wounds on his back to Hermione, who quickly removed
the blood and healed the skin.
When Hermione finished, she signalled to Tonks, who turned Remus back over and smiled into
her mate's eyes. "C'mere and let me clean up that beautiful face."
Remus frowned, struggling to keep from sobbing through the pain or falling unconscious. "It hasn't
been this bad in years."
Tonks kissed his forehead. "The wolf's worried about Teddy is all. It's to be expected. Mum fire-
called this morning, by the way. He's already feeling better."
Remus let out a sigh of relief, wincing in pain when Hermione mended another wound.
Hermione whimpered. "I'm so sorry, Remus."
"Not your fault," he said, reaching out and taking her hand. For some reason, the gesture looked
like it brought him more comfort than it did her.
"I should have learnt the potion when I had the chance."