Prompt #481 – Boulder – Audacity – slashluv18 – Harry Potter

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Title: Audacity
Fandom: Harry Potter
Prompts: #481 – Boulder
Warnings: None
Pairings: Remus/Hermione
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1,475
Summary: Muggle!AU. Someone is following Hermione

Hermione looked around the parking lot. There was complete silence, but she didn't let it fool her. She knew someone was following her. And she had an idea about who it might be.

Her mind flickered to almost a month ago when she received that mysterious letter without a return address. The letter spoke of someone's undying love for her. The person talked about how they were perfect for each other, and he knew that she'd see it soon or later. It also talked about making her see that she belonged with him, and how he'd wait for her, until she was ready to jump into his arms and declare her love for him.

Remus had been angry when she showed him the letter. "How can you be so calm about this?"

"It's just a note from some secret admirer. It's a little creepy, but I'm sure that once he realizes I have a boyfriend who I'm very serious about, he'll leave me alone."

"And what if he doesn't? This guy sounds like the stalker-type, and you're acting like it's no big deal."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Remus, I can't live my life in fear. I believe everything will be okay in the end."

"You need to be careful."

"I'm always careful, but I'm not going to hide away in our house.  I'm going to keep living my life, and nothing – especially not a letter from someone that'll probably never confront me – will make me stop going to work, hanging out with friends, and just doing my normal routine. You have to trust me."

Remus frowned, but he didn't fight her on it. "I hope you know what you're doing."

She stood on her toes and kissed the corner of his mouth. "I do. Trust me. Everything will work out the way it's supposed to."

Ever since then, she felt as if someone was following her. At first, she brushed it off as if it was just her overactive imagination. She might be a scientist, but her mind definitely knew how to dream up nearly impossible scenarios.

As the days passed, and she continued to feel as if someone was following her, doubts began to creep into her mind. Maybe Remus had been right to be concerned. She had known guys who had crushes on her before. The most annoying had been that Cormac bloke from school, but he was just obnoxious, not dangerous. Maybe she had been too easy to believe that this admirer would go away when he saw she wasn't responding positively to his letter. Then again, if he was truly watching her to see her reaction, maybe she should have realized, like Remus did, that this guy had stalkerish tendencies and might not simply disappear when he realized she wasn't interested in a relationship with him.

Her mind turned to Remus with his easygoing smile and love of books. Was he in danger? Would her admirer go after him to get him out of the way? He might if he thought it would help him get her.

Hermione took out her phone and punched the well known number as a boulder landed on her heart. She needed to make sure Remus was okay. With every ring, Hermione grew more frantic, growing even more certain that her boyfriend was dead and it was her entire fault, but when he picked up on the sixth ring, her fear turned into irrational anger. "You could have answered sooner!"

"Sorry, kitten. I fell asleep at my desk. Took me a minute to realize where I was and what was ringing. Are you okay?"

Hermione breathed deeply. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure?"

She smiled, letting the relief wash over her. "Very sure. I just wanted to hear your voice. Which I have. I know you're still at the office so why don't you go home and go to sleep in our bed. I'm sure it's much more comfortable than your desk."

Hermione heard the smile in Remus's voice when he answered. "Will do, and when you get home, don't be shy about waking me up. I absolutely love the methods you use."

"I'll think about it," she promised. She flipped her phone shut.

She was so glad to hear Remus's voice and to know for sure that he was okay that she forgot to be weary of the person following her. That was until someone grabbed her hand.

With a shriek, she turned around and was met by the sight of a vaguely familiar redhead. "Do I know you?"

"Don't act like you don't know me. We met at the coffee place, and it was love at first sight for both of us. I know you remember me. It's Ron."

Hermione thought really hard, and then she remembered bumping into him at her usual coffee place. She had paid him no real attention, only muttering a quick 'excuse me' as she left. Somehow, he had translated that to love at first sight for both of them. "Um, I think you have it wrong. I have a boyfriend, a man I'm very much in love with."

He gestured, waving what she said away, as if it was unimportant. "He's not good enough for you." He grabbed her hand and began pulling her, and she started struggling, wishing with all her heart that she had initially taken Remus's concerns seriously, and then as she got scared, wishing she had swallowed her pride and admitted it to Remus. Maybe she wouldn't be in this position if she had.

And then suddenly, she was free, and she was looking at a tall man with long black hair who had Ron on the ground. The man's knee was in his back, preventing the redhead from getting up, and his hands were holding Ron's hands behind his back.

He smirked at her when he glanced away from her stalker. "Police are already on their way. He'll be in lockup for at least 48 hours, but unfortunately, that's probably all since he didn't actually get the chance to harm you. You'll be able to get a restraining order, though, and hopefully that will be enough to deter him."

She dumbly nodded, but then when she realized she was saved by a complete stranger, she asked, "Who are you?"

He kept one hand locked on Ron's wrists and held out his other hand. "Sirius Black, personal bodyguard, at your service."

She shook his head. "I didn't hire you."

"No, but your boyfriend did. He was quite worried about you."

Hermione nodded, but inside, she was fuming. How dare Remus go behind her back like this! How could he not tell her? This Sirius guy had been completely invisible to her, which made her even more frightened since there had been two people tailing her. Oh, Remus was going to pay.

That night when she got home, she woke up Remus, but it was not in the way he would have preferred. She smacked her pillow on his head, startling him awake. "You hired a bodyguard for me?" she asked heatedly.

"I guess he was needed," Remus said knowingly, his amber eyes flashing.

"That's not the point."

Remus stood up. "I was worried about you. I was worried in a way you should have been, so I made sure you would be protected, even if I wasn't around. Maybe I should have told you, but I knew you would have fought me on it. It might not be what you want to hear, but I'm not sorry I did it. I would do anything to keep you safe. If our positions were reversed, what would you have done?"

All of her righteous anger fled at his simple question because he was right. Even if it would make him angry, she would have done anything if it meant he was safe. She couldn't imagine her life without him, and she knew it was the same for him. "You should have still told me," she muttered petulantly.

"Maybe, but I'm still not sorry." He held his arms open, and she willingly went into his warm embrace.

"It turned out to be some guy I bumped into at the coffee place. He declared that we loved each other at first sight. He also had the audacity to say that you weren't good enough for me."

"He might be right about that," Remus murmured against her forehead.

"Oh, shut it. Anyways, I can go tomorrow to get a restraining order."

"Good. Hopefully, this is over."

"Hopefully," Hermione agreed.

They held each other while they laid down, and Hermione allowed Remus's heartbeat to soothe her to sleep, and for the first time in weeks, there was no horrible nightmare. Her dream consisted of her and Remus having a picnic under a full moon. The perfect ending of a frightening night.