AN: I know, I know, Sirius dies in OotP, but I couldn't resist writing this. After all, I think they're an adorable couple.
Flashbacks should be fairly easy to spot, but just so you don't get confused, song lyrics will be surrounded by these. And for all of you familiar with the song from Les Miserables, I changed the names to fit the story, but that doesn't mean that the characters are breaking out into song at awkward moments… it just fits the story line better that way.
Enjoy!
A Little Fall of Rain
A wave of relief washed over the light side at the moment they realized their victory. They had finally done it. Voldemort had been defeated by the joint effort of Harry, Dumbledore, Sirius, Lupin, Snape, Hermione, Ron, and Draco, along with countless others. The younger Malfoy had been secretly spying for the light side for just under a year now, following in the footsteps of his godfather, Snape. The deep silence that usually went hand in hand with shock was abruptly broken by a joyous cry coming from the boy who lived.
"We did it! We finally did it!" he cried as tears of insurmountable joy flowed down his cheeks. Others cheered as well, glad to be liberated from the dark being.
Sirius turned to take in his surroundings and assess the damage that had been done. Countless corpses belonging to Death Eaters encased the several dozen aurors that had been struggling against the dark wizard and his minions. Snape seemed to be severely wounded, along with Malfoy and Arthur Weasley, but they were all being tended to by Madame Pomfrey and her small army of mediwitches and wizards. He took a deep breath and could swear that the miasma that had clouded them all while fighting had lifted the moment Harry had struck the final blow to Voldemort. As he wiped the sweat and grime from his brow with the back of his robed arm, Sirius saw Hermione stumble over to him with a grim smile on her face. He imagined that she was tired after all the effort, both magical and physical, she had put into ridding the muggle and wizarding world of the most blaring evil it had ever encountered. Padfoot smiled at the young woman, not forgetting the long conversation they had had the night before, knowing that death was a certain danger that they underwent in helping Harry and the others. They had talked for hours that night, sitting by the blazing fire in the Gryffindor common room long after the others had trudged to their beds and succumbed to the temptress that was sleep. He remembered all the words, fears, desires and secrets that they had shared, knowing that he would hold them dear forever, never letting himself forget the innocent look she had in her eyes during the entire episode.
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"I'm so scared, Sirius, what if we don't all make it? There's so much I haven't done, haven't said!" Hermione sniffled at her end of the overstuffed couch. She knew that she was just nervous, but it felt good to let someone else hear her fears, to set down her burden.
He smiled at her and scooted closer, putting his arm around her shaking form and pulling her into his warm, comforting embrace. If he was truly honest with himself, he knew the exact moment when her very being had first begun to captivate him, yet he kept quiet, for fear of scaring her away. "It's okay, 'Mione, we're all afraid. Don't worry, we'll all be fine when it's all said and done." He knew of course that this wasn't necessarily true, someone was bound to get hurt and maybe even killed in the battle that was to come, but it wouldn't do to tell her that and make her more nervous than she already was. Sirius felt compelled to protect her from all the evils of the world, and fear was one of those evils. He prayed that she would never know the intense fear that he did every time she put herself in danger to save others, or the overwhelming sense of dread he experienced when she left him. He wasn't sure of how she felt for him, but if the way she was holding onto him as tightly as she could were any indication, his feelings weren't totally unreciprocated.
"Oh, Sirius, I can't imagine having to leave everyone behind without saying goodbye, especially you," she said timidly as she blinked back tears. Reveling in the feel of having her body pushed up against his muscular, protective form, Hermione realized it was now or never. 'I've got to tell him, I might not get another chance…' she decided silently. "Sirius, I have something to tell you," she whispered as she loosened her grip enough to look up at him.
The sound of her soft voice pulled him from his inner musings and he looked down at her compassionate features and smiled to encourage her. "Yes, Hermione, what is it?" he asked with a heart-warming smile. Hermione vaguely noticed that he had called her by her full name, not his nickname for her, 'Mione, or any of the other endearing terms she had come to expect from him. This fact made her feel as though he would take her seriously and the look in his eyes gave her all the courage she needed. She took a deep breath before beginning.
"It's just that, well, how do I put this?" she started nervously. Taking a moment to sort her thoughts as she gazed into the fire, she knew what she wanted to say and began again. "Ever since Harry and I helped you escape back in third year, I knew that there was something about you that was… different." She glanced up at him and noticed his confused look before recovering. "Oh, it wasn't anything bad, Sirius! I just noticed that when I was around you I felt… comfortable. It never occurred to me that it might be more than respect, but that respect grew to something more right under my nose, and soon I didn't just feel comfortable, I felt safe. I know that you're a powerful wizard, Sirius, and yet, that wasn't what made me feel that way. It was as though I knew that whenever I was around you, no harm could possibly come to me." She took a deep breath in an effort to steady her racing heartbeat before returning to her explanation. "After seeing how much you cared for Harry and how much you strove to keep him from pain, I was certain that I felt much more for you than I could have possibly anticipated. All those times you talked to us and comforted me in particular, I felt cared for. It wasn't as though I've never felt that way before; I know that both Harry and Ron care for me deeply, as I do them, but it was so much more intimate with you. I felt content around you, and I still do, but I wanted you to know how I feel before tomorrow, because as much as you all try to comfort me, I know that the danger is real, as is the threat of death." The charming witch turned to him with a nervous smile plastered on her face and finally came to the conclusion of her speech. "I think I love you, Sirius. I don't expect you to return those sort of feelings for a foolish young witch like me, of course, I just couldn't bear to keep it inside any longer."
His heart felt as it would burst and in a move swift enough to make the quickest of seekers green with envy, he pulled his darling 'Mione into an affectionate embrace. "I've waited to hear that for so long, Hermione," he laughed with his deep rich voice, "And don't ever call yourself foolish again."
Hermione scarcely remembered brushing her lips across his own and pulling herself up to her dormitory after several hours of being in each other's embrace, falling asleep with a small, albeit powerful, smile upon her pink lips.
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The feel of her small hand on his arm brought him back from his enjoyable reverie, and he turned to smile at her exhausted visage.
"Sirius, we did it…" she murmured as she used her grip on his arm to steady herself. Her eyes glazed over and she gazed into space, clutching at her stomach.
"'Mione, what's wrong?" he asked as he noticed the far-off look in her eyes.
"I… I don't think I can stand much longer," she panted as she swayed and fell backwards. She waited for the inevitable crushing sensation of the ground to greet her body, but found herself encased in his gentle arms as he caught her and set her to the ground; he held her as carefully as his wracked nerves would allow.
"Hermione, what's wrong?" he repeated hurriedly. 'Why didn't I keep a closer eye on her!' "Hermione, look at me! Tell me what's wrong!" His eyes swept over her body and settled on the spot she had been clutching earlier. Only now did he notice that her hands were leaking a deep crimson. He pulled her hands from her wound and what he found made his breath leave him in one terrible second of recognition. 'One of Lucius Malfoy's attacks…' A hole had been torn out of her robe in the shape of a coiling serpent, and blood seeped out of the reptilian looking wound as basilisk poison poured into her blood stream. It seemed that the others had noticed his desperate cries too, because after that moment it was morbidly silent.
"Don't worry," she managed to laugh doggedly before coughing up a bit of blood as the poison marred her internal organs, "at least I'll die with no regrets, right?"
Don't you fret, Monsieur Sirius, I don't feel any pain
A little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now
You're here, that's all I need to know
And you will keep me safe, and you will keep me close
And rain will make the flowers grow
"You won't die, Hermione. Don't ever say things like that. Madame Pomfrey! Come help her!" the silky tone that usually inhabited his voice was replaced with a panic stricken one that didn't seem to fit his character.
But you will live 'Mione, dear God above
If I could heal your wounds with words of love
The aged mediwitch looked up and gasped at what she saw. It wasn't a gasp of merely fear; it held horror, anger, surprise, and finally what seemed to be despair. She looked to Dumbledore and shook her head slowly, keeping her tear filled eyes set on her feet. Dumbledore's eyes swept over the crowd of stunned witches and wizards until they landed on Sirius, where he confirmed Padfoot's worst fears with a grim shake of his head. 'The poison, it's too far along…' he realized. The Order discovered that not only had Voldemort's dark army developed new kinds of poisons using basilisk venom, they had made them virtually incurable. Several seconds after entering the blood stream, it made it's way to the heart and through veins and capillaries from every vital organ to each individual cell, worked on destroying it's victims from the inside out. Tears stung his eyes as the hopelessness of the situation dawned on him. 'I just earned her love, and now she's to be taken away from me! Why is fate so cruel…'
Just hold me now and let it be
Shelter me, comfort me
Harry and Ron, after seconds of gawking and wondering if this was all a nightmare, ran to their nearly lifeless friend and knelt beside her with tears running down their cheeks. "Hermione, no!" Ron exclaimed when he saw the state she was in and reality finally set in. "You can't leave us! We need you…" Sobs wracked his body and Harry had trouble breathing in between his gasps for air as well. "'Mione, don't leave us now, not when we all have so much to live for…" Harry whispered, brushing the back of his hand across her cheek and wiping a stray tear from underneath her cinnamon colored eyes. She forced a pain-filled smile up at them and breathed, "I'm sorry, boys, but I don't think I have a choice. Do me a favor, will you? Live long lives and try to remember all the great times we had, you know, back when I was an insufferable know-it-all." The small request seemed to have taken a lot out of the girl, for another wave of coughs overtook her small frame, preceding a small amount of blood trickling out of the corner of her mouth. Sirius quickly wiped it away with his hand and gave her the most hopeful smile he could muster. Ron and Harry saw the look in his watery eyes and took this as their cue to say their goodbyes. They both took turns kissing her on the forehead with a murmured, "I love you 'Mione," accompanying each. She beamed up at them as she had for the last seven odd years and said solidly, "I love you both so much."
Sirius bit back a sob as he heard her words and pulled her more closely to his body, willing it to take the poison for her, yet it was a futile attempt. He pulled her into his lap and smelled her hair as he whispered insensible words of love and longing into her ear.
You would live a hundred years if I could show you how
I won't desert you now
Hermione smiled as she felt his rough cheek slide across her porcelain skin and knew that she would miss her moments with her friends and Sirius more than anything in the world, more than books and Crookshanks and S.P.E.W. combined.
The rain can't hurt me now
This rain will wash away what's past
"Sirius, I love you so much. I wish I had had the courage to tell you sooner," she murmured into his ear as he held her ever closer, "I would sell my soul to have more time with you."
And you will keep me safe
And you will keep me close
I'll sleep in your embrace at last
"As would I, 'Mione, as would I. But let's not think about that, let's think about now, let's think about the fact that we're together at last. I've loved you since I first saw you, my dear, you must know that," he whispered tenderly into her unruly hair. The pain growing inside him was almost too much to bear, but he tried to push it aside and make her last minutes on earth as enjoyable as they could be.
The rain that brings you here is heaven blessed
The skies begin to clear and I'm at rest
A breath away from where you are
I've come home from so far
She knew that it was hard for him to let go; it was hard for her, too, but she didn't have any choice, so she resigned to accept the fact that they were to be parted. "Guess what, Sirius?" she asked raggedly.
He smiled down at her through the blurry pools filling his eyes and rubbed her back soothingly. "What is it, love?"
"It doesn't even hurt anymore," she whispered tiredly, closing her eyes to keep from seeing the pain that had captured his. The poison was beginning the final stage in shutting down her body, numbing her nerves, and he knew that she wouldn't have long.
So don't you fret Monsieur Sirius, I don't feel any pain
A little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now
"Hermione, don't leave me, please don't leave me! We need you; I need you…" he whimpered as he held her form as close to his body as he could without crushing her.
The others watched as silently as their tears had been during the whole ordeal, watching their peer, student, and friend slip away before them.
I'm here-
-That's all I need to know
"I love you, Sirius, I love you so much…" she gasped as she felt the last of her body's defenses shutting down. "I'll miss you…"
And you will keep me safe/I will stay with you
And you will keep me close/'til you are sleeping
And rain/and rain
Will make the flowers/will make the flowers-
Sirius felt her body droop as her soul left her, and he cried with more passion that he had in his entire life. He could feel the loss pierce him like a flaming sword as he realized that he would never see her smiling face again. "'Mione," he protested, "Oh God, she's gone…" He held her body so that she seemed to mold to his own and he could feel the temperature of her skin falling at the same rate as the sinking of his heart. "I'll always love you, Hermione."
Grow