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Lunaticus Book One: Half Moon	By : JBankai89 Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Remus Views: 18455 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns Harry Potter, I gain nothing from this but a way to pass the time.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
A/N: Hello all! Thank you soooo much for the comments on chapter one of this fic. I pull the same self-doubt shit every time I start posting a new fic, and it's always exciting to see people responding well to it. Here is chapter two, I hope it lives up to your expectations. As always, comments and concrit are greatly appreciated!

Chapter 2 – Hunted

“Okay Harry,” Ginny wandered into the sitting room with a scroll of parchment in her hands, scribbling across it with her favourite self-inking quill as she went. She fell onto the sofa and propped her feet up on Harry's lap, her ankles crossed. “Fidelius Charm—done. Unplottable, check. Disillusionment Charms, check. Muggle repelling charms, check. Muffliato...did I forget anything?” She looked up, while Harry stared into the crackling fire, his mouth twitched into a small frown.

“No, that's everything I think. I blocked the Floo, and I promised Hermione that I wouldn't accept any unfamiliar owls.” He refocused his attention on the pair of dainty feet resting in his lap, peeled off Ginny's socks, and began to rub one of her left foot; it had been a long day for both of them, and Harry always enjoyed giving his girlfriend footrubs. Ginny tilted her head back and sighed, tossing the parchment and quill onto the coffee table as she relaxed.

“That's it then, we're sealed off.” She sighed again, something closer to a moan, and Harry smirked. “That feels nice,” she murmured, tilting her head up slightly so that she could look at him with half-lidded eyes.

“It's been a weird day,” Harry continued massaging her foot as he spoke, and she jerked her head in something of a lazy nod.

“You can say that again.”

“It's been a weird day,” Ginny snorted and reached out to smack him.

“Smartass,” she flopped back against the cushions, pinching the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. “I just can't believe we're hiding from Remus of all people. It's so weird.”

“I know,” Harry switched to her other foot, “I guess we just forget sometimes that...well, he's not human. He has to play by different rules.”

“Yeah, but it's not like it's his fault that this happened, or yours,” she added when she saw him open his mouth to protest. “You didn't know, you didn't remember, whatever. The point is, you had no idea that protecting a longtime friend would cause this...mess.”

“I hope Ron and Hermione will be okay,” he muttered, frowning. “We should check the Black family library, see if there's anything there on werewolves...”

“I'm sure they'll have the good sense to put extra wards around their flat as well as The Burrow. Once this bond takes hold, I'm sure those are the first places Remus will think to look for you. I mean, once he realizes that he can't...get here.” Her voice softened a little, and she frowned.

“God this is so weird,” Harry burst out, releasing her other foot while she sat up curled into his side. He instinctively coiled an arm around her, and she rested her head against his shoulder. “I never in my life thought I'd go in hiding from Remus Lupin.” He knew he was repeating her words, but his mind still hadn't caught up with the reality of what was happening.

“It's better than if you had done nothing,” Ginny's mouth quirked into a small frown, and she pressed closer to him. It was strange to see her so afraid; she hadn't looked like that since the war. The reminder of it caused a flood of emotion to rush through him, and Harry had to look away to compose himself. He didn't want Ginny to think that he'd fall to pieces that easily.

“What do you know about this...claim...thing?” Harry asked after he'd found his voice again.

“About as much as Hermione or Ron,” she shrugged. “Knowing who Remus is, I think it might take a little longer than normal for the magical aspects of it to kick in, because I doubt he would want to succumb to...you know. But you saw him when it happened, it was like...” She shivered, “I mean, his instincts will tell him to seek you out, to protect you. But his instincts, from what I know, won't be able to differentiate between friend and foe. So like Hermione said...he might see me as a threat to you.” Harry's hold on her tightened.

“I'd never let anything happen to you.”

“I know, Harry.” She reached up and squeezed his arm gently. “But this is different, it's Primal Magic. It's like...It's like a hurricane. It's not something that can be controlled.. You might not have a whole lot of choices here...” Harry sputtered at her words, effectively cutting her off.

“And what is that supposed to mean? I reject his...advances,” the corner of his mouth twitched into half of a bitter smile. The word sounded very weird when paired with Remus. “I want to be with you. We'll figure out some way to break it, and everyone goes home happy.”

“That's the thing Harry,” she said with a huff of impatience. “Were you even listening to Hermione? Usually, you need to accept the advances of the werewolf, or one of you has to die in order to break the bond. Can you really kill Remus?” Harry shook his head at once. After Voldemort, he refused to kill again. It wasn't something that was in him, and the idea of more death at his hands made his stomach roil.

“No, but...Ginny, are you suggesting I, what? Leave you for or old Defence professor?” Ginny snorted, and Harry couldn't help but crack a grin. It just sounded too ridiculous.

“Harry, are you even attracted to men?” Her question sobered Harry up like nothing else, and he felt a flush begin to creep up his neck. His gaze shifted to her, and he could see at once that the laughter had faded from her eyes. Much to Harry's surprise, the question was not paired with a look of suspicion or anger, but a bright-eyed curiosity he'd rarely seen in her.

“Sure, yeah. Not that it matters. I'm with you.” Harry shrugged, his thumb rubbing circles on her shoulder. “I've known that I've been into both since maybe...fourth year?”

“Diggory?” Harry felt his face colour further, and Ginny giggled.

“Diggory,” he confirmed with a short nod of his head. The memory of his first crush on a bloke still filled him with a sick sort of grief, given how it had played out, but the warmth of Ginny at his side helped chase away the demons of the past. In an effort to lighten the mood, he cleared his throat and brought their attention back to their more immediate problem. “So...tell me again why we need muggle repelling charms? It's not like we need to worry about the encyclopædia salesman popping by.”

“Hermione's idea,” she replied with a small shrug. “She figured that Remus could, y'know, if he wanted to, use a muggle to re-locate the house. It's pretty unlikely, with the other wards in place, but better safe than sorry, I guess.” Harry grimaced at her words.

“Yeah, I guess.”

~*~

Harry sent off his new tawny owl, Strax, with a note to Ron and Hermione. It contained only the address, Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, under a charm that if intercepted, only they would be able to read it. As Harry watched Strax take off, he felt his stomach twist with unease. All the charms, the secrecy, coded messages...it felt painfully similar to how things had been at the beginning of the war.

This realization woke in him memories he'd rather not recall, and he forced his gaze away from the dot of his owl on the orange horizon. Harry felt as though he'd been swept up by a tornado and dropped in some bizarre parallel universe. It still hadn't sunk in that they were in hiding from Remus Lupin, the most mild-mannered person Harry knew. The warnings that the man could get violent with those closest to him made his head ache; it was like being confronted with a Blast-Ended Skrewt with a sparkling personality.

Harry went to bed that evening hoping that things would look better in the morning, but as Ginny snuggled into his side, he felt his positivism draining from him like water through his fingers.

A gloom hung over the couple as they nursed bowls of porridge and cups of coffee the next morning. Harry supposed that Ginny looking forward to being locked up in Grimmauld Place for the next...however long this took to sort out about as much as he was. He felt a pang of empathy for his late godfather, as even with the vast improvements to the interior decor, it was still dead depressing.

A sudden knock on the door made both their heads shoot up, eyes wide with panic. “Harry! Harry, open up, it's us!” Hermione's muffled voice came from the other side of the door, and Harry rushed over to let them in. They both looked grim as they crossed the threshold. “We've got news, and it isn't good.”

“Brilliant,” Harry grumbled, grimacing as he caught sight the sizable sheaf of parchment and heavy tomes she and Ron both carried. “C'mon, you want some breakfast?” Ron's eyes lit up at the sound of food, while Hermione seemed too focused on the problem at hand to think much about her own stomach. Even so, Harry pushed two bowls of porridge topped with a sizable glob of treacle across the table, as well as coffee in overlarge chipped mugs. Hermione pushed the offered food to one side and set down her research in front of her.

“As far as I know,” she began as Harry sat down again and returned to his breakfast, “Remus hasn't done anything—er—rash, yet. At least, no one has told us about him asking around for you, or anything like that. The Prophet hasn't even reported it, but I think Kingsley is trying to keep it quiet.” Harry smiled a little at the bit of good news, though he doubted that Rita Skeeter would be able to keep her mouth shut for long. “I've been looking into this human-werewolf claim-potential thing,” Hermione continued, “and it looks like it could get pretty...well, messy.” She grimaced.

“Define messy.” Harry had spent half the night worrying about what might happen, and he had no patience for Hermione's attempt to break the news to him gently.

“Well, the claim coincides with what Snape told us about in third year—mostly. It's a bit more complex than a normal marriage bond.” Everyone grimaced at her choice of wording, “basically, like I said, you protecting him on the day of the half moon means you laid claim on Remus as a potential...mate,” she barely whispered the word, and she flushed a little as she said it. “It won't change your personalities in the strictest sense, but it will compel the wolf part of Remus to reciprocate the claim. And it may encourage you to accept it, as well.” Harry swallowed thickly at her words, pushed aside the latter part of her statement, and focused for the moment on what Remus might do.

“Reciprocate...like how?” Ginny looked as worried as Harry felt. He reached out at the same moment that she did, and he squeezed her hand.

“This is a human-werewolf bond,” Hermione began, and at the term Harry's brow furrowed a little. He'd heard her use it a few times, but he wasn't certain what that meant. Fortunately, it seemed that she sensed his confusion and elaborated. “There's at least half a dozen different kinds of claims and bonds in werewolf culture. A claim of a mating bond between a human and a werewolf is vastly different from a mating bond between two werewolves, for example, and then there are many other varieties, claim to turn someone, claim to challenge an Alpha or Beta for their position in the pack, claim to—”

“Okay Hermione,” Harry said, trying to keep the exasperation in his voice to a bare minimum, “let's get back to the point.” She went a little pink with embarrassment, cleared her throat once, and looked back at her notes.

“First, he'll feel compelled to find you. Find you, keep you, and protect you...” Hermione grimaced and Harry shivered, looking down at his half-eaten porridge. Keep him? That sounded bad. “After Remus finds you, he'll want to...” Hermione trailed off and blushed a deep crimson. “I mean, it won't make him force himself on you, as far as I've read. The claim is based in Primal Magic and instinct and all that, but the magic itself comes from the desire to protect, it's not inherently something sexual. It shouldn't push Remus to rape or sexual assault, and there's no account of a werewolf ever doing such a thing to their human mate.” Harry didn't like her use of the word shouldn't instead of won't, it almost made it sound as though there was a chance he might do something. Harry shook his head and fought back a shiver; the idea that Remus wanted to have sex with him was just too weird.

“So what can I do about it?” His voice carried a faint tremor to it, and Harry felt Ginny squeeze his hand gently.

“Not much,” Hermione grimaced again, “you can reject his advances, there are a few accounts of that happening, but it won't end well for the werewolf. He'll get possessive, angry...most of the ones I've read about go mad.” She shuffled through her pile, her frown deepening. “Usually, a claim is laid because the person already had romantic feelings for the werewolf in question, so there's usually no reason to want to break the bond. Like I said, the only surefire way to break it is if one of you dies, which, obviously, we'd rather not happen. And there's...other stuff.” She went a little pink again, and Ginny's hand tightened in his.

“Out with it Hermione,” he muttered in a monotone, while he pushed away his uneaten porridge.

“Well, when the full moon is near, he'll be more, erm, determined, I guess? He might be violent, not to you, but to those close to you. There's a few accounts of a family member being seriously hurt by the potential's werewolf because they did something as simple as giving them a hug or holding their hand. They'd never hurt their potential, but they'll feel the need to protect you from basically any outside influence. It can get out of hand pretty fast.” She frowned again, determinedly not meeting his or Ginny's gaze.

“Can get this more fun?” Harry mumbled sarcastically, while he lowered his gaze to the tabletop, and picked absently at an indentation at the edge.

“Well...things can get pretty weird even after the claim is reciprocated and the magic has settled.” Harry looked up again.

“Weird how?”

“Well, while the potential is the one to make the initial claim, it's always the werewolf who is the er...domineering one in the relationship.” Hermione went a little pink again, despite her best efforts to sound academic and impartial. “They will usually make an effort to assert their dominance even when it's completely unnecessary. Like...if they see someone touching their partner, they'll make a show of holding them or being quite open with their affections, even if it's completely unnecessary. There are a few accounts here...” she trailed off, riffling through her papers again, “ah...here: Accounts of the werewolf going as far as determining who the potential can associate with, what they're allowed to eat...”

Harry felt a sick sort of cold settle in the pit of his stomach as Hermione spoke, and he saw her eyes widen in alarm when she seemed to realize the effect her words were having. “Those cases are really, really rare, Harry,” Hermione added hastily, “I doubt Remus would be like that. Most of these accounts are things the werewolf has done near to the full moon. It's not like the werewolf in the, er, relationship will be like that all time.” Even with her reassurance, Harry still felt properly afraid for the first time in ages, and for a moment he felt as though he was frozen on the spot. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening.

“What am I supposed to do Hermione?” He croaked at last, looking up at her with wide, pleading eyes. “This is...it's-it's mad.” He felt completely overwhelmed by what she was telling him. Harry's hand was tense in Ginny's, her sudden tiny gasp of pain the only indicator of how tightly he had been holding onto her, and he quickly relaxed his grip.

“Honestly? I don't know, Harry.” Her gaze flitted momentarily to Ginny, and her eyes became suddenly very sad. “Your safest option might to just accept his advances. If you don't he might pose a threat to everyone around you. Even with wolfsbane, there's no telling what he might do. This bond might be stronger than his will.” Harry choked at her words, and shifted his wide-eyed gaze to Ginny.

“Accept? How can you even say that? He's—he's Remus Lupin. He's—God, he's old enough to be my father.” Harry shivered and looked down at the tabletop again.

“I know Harry,” Hermione said gently, “but this isn't just about you. You need to consider what will happen if you reject him, in the long run I mean.” Harry looked up and saw that she was looking significantly in Ginny's direction. Break it off with Ginny to be with...he couldn't even form the thought. “He'll eventually target those who you're close to. I don't know what'll happen, or how out of hand this whole thing might get.” Her voice maintained that soft, placating calm, like Harry was some distraught beast that needed to be soothed. “I just don't want to see anyone getting hurt.”

“Why me, Hermione?” He felt his overwhelming fear give way to frustrated anger. It just wasn't fair. “Why do I have to do this? Why can't I just have my life?” He gritted his teeth, “I did everything Dumbledore wanted, everything I needed to do to fulfill the Prophecy. I died for Christ's sake! I just want a life that's mine.” For a moment, his voice caught, and the gentle warmth of Ginny's hand in his grounded him enough to bring him back to reality.

“Hermione, isn't there anything we can do to break this, other than killing Harry or Remus?” Ginny's voice was steadier than Harry's had been, and not for the first time, he felt amazed by how strong she was. It couldn't have been easy being witness to this entire mess, but the way her face was hardened, showing no emotion, it told Harry that she was as upset about this as he was, even if she wasn't showing it.

“I'll keep looking,” she said with a small frown, “but so far it looks pretty unlikely.”

“We'll check the Black library,” Harry added in, his voice croaking more than he had meant for it to. In a moment of panic, he realized something that they may have missed. “Did anyone get in contact with Bill? Is Shell Cottage warded too? Remus might try there too, since Bill is the only other sort-of werewolf that we know.”

“Way ahead of you mate,” Ron replied thickly around a mouthful of porridge, while both Hermione and Ginny wrinkled their noses with disgust. “Dad contacted them last night, it's all warded and everything.”

“Good,” Harry breathed a small sigh of relief. He hated the idea of Fleur or little Victoire getting caught in the crossfire.

The couple stuck around until Ron had consumed three helping of porridge, then headed off for the day. In the silence that followed, Harry felt no more at ease. He had remained at the table while Ginny escorted them out, talking with urgent whispers quietly enough that Harry couldn't overhear them. With a huff, he pressed his forehead against the cool tabletop and closed his eyes. Why me? The thought passed through his mind for the millionth time that morning, and it was still as gut-wrenching as it had been every other time. He couldn't wrap his head around it, and a small part of him didn't want to understand it, much less accept it. Harry sat up with a small huff, only to see Ginny leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed, watching him uncertainly. He forced a small smile, but she didn't seem pacified by the gesture.

“Library, then?” He asked her wearily. All he wanted to do was crawl in a hole and sleep for fifty years, but he figured that at least attempting to work out the problem was better than sitting around and wallowing in despair.

“Yeah, all right,” she forced a small smile and moved over to him, sliding her hand into his before making their way down the hall.

~*~

Why did I suggest research when I could be doing something fun? Harry frowned, staring over the top of the book at Ginny, who was bent over a particularly low shelf, sifting through the dusty volumes that they had yet to go through. The sight of her delightfully muscled backside made him feel delightfully warm. The moment he reluctantly shifted his gaze back down to the book in his hands, his arousal died as soon as it had come. Words like werewolf and mate-bond jumped out at him, and he felt as though he had swallowed several live snakes.

A sudden crack made both Harry and Ginny jump, she letting out a squawk of surprise and dropping the book under her arm directly onto her bare foot. Hopping on one foot and wincing, she shot Kreacher a nasty look. “Master Harry and Mistress Ginny,” he bowed deeply to them each in turn, Regulus's locket scraping slightly against the floor as he did so. “Kreacher is bringing you lunch, as Master Harry is saying he wishes to spend more time with The Library.” He clicked his fingers and a towering plate of sandwiches as well as a flagon of pumpkin juice appeared on one of the empty tables.

“Yeah, thanks Kreacher. D'you remember what I told you last night?” Kreacher nodded fervently, his ears flapping.

“Master Harry says to not let nasty werewolves in. Kreacher remembers.” Harry felt his gut twist uncomfortably at the elf's choice of words, but nodded.

“Er—yeah. Exactly. Um, thanks again, for the sandwiches I mean.” Kreacher bowed again and disappeared with another loud crack. Harry sighed heavily and stood with his book, moving over to the food the elf had brought with him. Ginny limped over to him with a small stack of books in her arms, and they punctuated their reading with large, undignified bites of roast beef.

“Ugh,” Ginny pushed away another volume in frustration towards the small pile of books they'd already gone over. “This is so stupid. Hermione's good at this sort of thing, not me. Not to mention that there's nothing about how to break this bond thing.” It had been an hour, and both of them had come up with next to nothing that would fall into the realm of helpful information.

“Nothing in here either,” Harry snapped the book shut and set it aside. He raked his fingers through his hair with a huff of frustration, staring over at the stack they had yet to go through. “I wish these damn writers would stop romanticizing it,” he grumbled, reaching for another thick volume titled Non-Human Rites and Rituals, and opened it at random and began flicking through the pages. “There's nothing romantic about this.” He could feel his anxiety beginning mount, and it seemed as though Ginny could sense it.

“Just breathe, Harry,” Ginny said patiently, her head cradled in her hand as she flicked through the pages absentmindedly. “If you're in a panic, you might miss something.”

“How are you so calm about all this?” He grumbled, turning his gaze from her to the book.

“I'm not,” her gaze shot up to him, and his head snapped up in surprise to her sharp tone. “I hate the idea that you might have to—” she cut herself off, grumbling her frustration. “Losing our heads won't help, so I'm doing what I can to help you, you prat.”

“Sorry Ginny,” he mumbled after a moment of tense silence, “I'm just...a little freaked out by all this.”

“It's fine,” she replied, her voice still tense, “let's just try and get through this, maybe we'll find something before dinner.”

Another three more hours of looking, and Harry still felt as though they were still stuck at square one. Harry followed Ginny out of the library and into the sitting room, and threw himself bodily onto the sofa. He rubbed at the corners of his eyes in a vain attempt to banish some of his exhaustion. Harry's intent to nap and perhaps forget about the impossible situation for a couple hours was cut short however when he heard Ginny make a noise like an angry cat. He looked up and saw her looking out the window, her body taut with agitation.

“What is it?” He didn't move from his spot, certain that he already knew what her answer would be.

“It's Remus.”

A/N: I'm going by the approximation in terms of Victoire's age according to an HP Wiki I found, so she's about one.
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Lunaticus Book One: Half Moon