Sirius gripped his coffee cup and walked to the window. He took a sip, licking his lips from the heat. He checked his watch. '6 AM…' he muttered gruffly. He rubbed his head, his black hair falling in his face. He put his cup down, sitting down on the yellow bench under the window. The ocean looked almost peaceful, an occasional wave breaking the silence in the cottage.
"Ron, NO!" Her scream echoed throughout the caves and Harry darted after Bellatrix. She shot a spell at him but he ducked just in time, hitting the cave wall. Hermione screamed again, crying, holding Ron's limp body and Bellatrix apparated away. Sirius held Hermione tight as she sobbed into his neck. Harry ran back, and preformed every spell he could to try and revive Ron, but it was no use.
H e swallowed the lump in his throat and a tear ran down his cheek. He hadn't cried since the night James and Lily were killed. He was stronger than this. Yet, something about the way Hermione completely fell apart set something off inside of him and he couldn't stop himself. He rubbed his eyes, trying to stop the tears from flowing. He threw his coffee on the ground, shattering the cup out of anger, and started sobbing again.
"Hermione, are you going to be okay?" Sirius knelt in front of her, but she didn't reply and she didn't look up. She just continued to look at the ground. "Hermione, it's been a week since you've talked. Please say something." He nudged her and she snapped at him. "Will you just leave me alone? I don't want to talk to anyone!" She buried her head in her hands and started to cry again. She looked deathly. Her makeup had smeared down both her cheeks and she obviously hadn't eaten or slept in days. She hadn't changed her clothes, and she hadn't even taken a shower. She refused to take care of herself since Ron's death.
"Hermione, c'mon. You're a mess, let's get you cleaned up." He took her arm and helped her up off the ground. "You need a hot shower, and a new outfit." She smiled a bit, her voice creaky.
"Am I that bad?" He laughed and nodded.
"And you need a good meal too, you're getting thin. You've been sitting in the same spot for a week, you need help walking?" She took a step and her knee gave out. She slipped backwards, but Sirius caught her and led her to her room so she could shower and change.
He punched the wall, causing a few tea cups to fall off their shelves and shatter on the floor. He muttered 'I'm sorry, Hermione..." and sank to his knees, surrounded by broken porcelain and coffee.
"The ministry is going to be after me, Harry." Sirius stated at the dinner table. Harry and Hermione both looked up at him faces frozen. "And when they find me, they'll find you. They'll do anything to get you both dead, even if Hermione is a woman. "He paused and took a bite of his food.
"I'm very definitely a woman and I enjoy it! What does that have to do with the sodding ministry? Bellatrix is a woman too and they caught her! Are you implying that women are incapable of staying hidden, Sirius?" Harry cleared his throat and Hermione calmed down.
"Not even close, Hermione. I'm simply saying they won't set you free because you're a woman. Nothing more, nothing less." She took a deep breath and continued eating.
He stood up and looked at the picture of her in the window. It was before Ron died, and she was laughing at something he had said. She didn't know he had the picture, but it was his companion when he felt most alone. Her auburn hair was blowing in the wind and covered her face partially when she whipped around laughing. Her smile illuminated the whole picture, and her eyes illuminated his heart. He missed her more than he could admit to himself.
"You'll have to stay in the cottage for months, Sirius." Hermione spoke softly, sitting beside him in their tent. Harry had gone to bed already, and neither she nor Sirius could sleep.
"I know, but I couldn't bare being the reason for you getting killed." He gazed upon her, the moon coming in from the window. "I couldn't live with myself, Hermione." He dropped his head to think about what he was doing. She was at least twenty years younger than him, it would never work.
"Why not? Everyone makes mistakes, Sirius. If you could please just stay with us..." He could tell she was going to cry again. He pulled her into a hug and she cried on his shoulder.
"Well, Harry is my Godson..."
"No one does anything from a single motive, Sirius. What's your real reason? Why are you so stuck on protecting me?" He held his tongue for a second too long. She sighed and stood up, walking away from him. He couldn't tell her. He just couldn't.
He wished he had made his move, because her eyes still taunted him, eliminating any confidence he could have in himself. He was such a coward.
He kissed her forehead, she was sleeping. He was leaving to the cottage before they woke so no goodbyes were necessary. They had worked it out; he would have no contact with them. He looked down at her beautiful face, and apparated away with a crack.