DISCLAIMED: (01/04/09) Edited: (4/20/09)

Pairings: Sirius/Hermione

Rating: Mature (Eventually)

Summary: A twist on the Hermione as an Unspeakable and retrieving Sirius from the Veil. Crossover with the Final Fantasy X world, Lord Braska's period. May contain Rikku.

-Chapter 三

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Hermione slept fitfully. She had nightmares of terrifying monsters with a thousand eyes and rows upon rows of jagged teeth. It was when she screamed out for Sirius to help her and he merely turned his back on her that she jerked awake.

Sirius jerked back as she sat up.

"Hermione?"

She blinked at him until he came into focus. Seeing the genuine concern on his face for some reason brought her to tears. She choked as she started to sob.

"Hey, hey, now." Concerned, Sirius sat next to her on the bed, gathering her into his arms. "It's alright. It was just a nightmare. Shh," he soothed as she soaked his chest with tears.

"I'm sorry," she sniffed when she finally managed to control herself. Wiping her eyes, she smiled gratefully when he handed her a handkerchief. Leaning away from him, she blew her nose. He respectfully shifted off the bed and pulled up a chair next to the bed.

"It's quite alright," he assured her. "Not to say that I'm comfortable dealing with crying women, but I understand you've been through a lot."

She sniffled, glancing at the side table. There was a tray of food. She was suddenly starving.

Sirius saw her gaze. "Please, eat. You'll most likely feel much better if you do." He stood and lifted the tray over her lap.

He saw her blush at the attention and wondered at it.

Sitting back down, he watched her tear into the meat. He smiled slightly. It was like watching Rhys eat. Which was actually refreshing seeing a woman do so. Most woman were dainty eaters around him, using the food to entice him into their beds rather than gaining any nutritional value.

When she'd eaten her fill, she glanced at him, her cheeks red. He smiled. "Feel better?"

She nodded as she swallowed. He handed her a glass, which she took gratefully and gulped down the wine.

Taking the tray, he set it aside before looking at her. Her features were no longer tense and she had relaxed against the headboard. Hair had come loose from her ponytail and hung in her face, framing her overly wide eyes, still sparkling from recently shed tears. The fact that she was in his bed, wearing his shirt and looked thoroughly rumpled did nothing to help him focus on the matter at hand.

"Sirius?"

He lifted his gaze to her face. Her eyes were wide and innocent.

"What's going on here?"

He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He was fighting the urge to tell her everything. He knew nothing about her, but he was willing to put his entire livelihood in her hands. It made no sense.

"I'm going to need a little more from you first," he conceded.

Hermione turned to look straight ahead. "Ask me, then."

Glancing down at her impossibly small shorts, he said, "For starters, what are you wearing? Are you an explorer, or something?"

He got a smile.

"It was Halloween," she said. "I left in the middle of the party to go to my lab—"

"Lab?"

She turned to look at him. "Laboratory. In the Department of Mysteries where I work. I had a sudden … I don't know," she paused her brow creasing. "I suppose you could say epiphany or … an urge. Anyway, I noticed, from using Muggle technology that a decade after anything disappears into the Veil, its magical pulse increases exponentially for a short while. We even have a machine that shows landscapes appearing. It … well, it gave us hope that the Veil was a portal to another world, not necessarily the afterlife."

Sirius' mind whirled through her unfamiliar terminology. He frowned.

"So you decided to jump in?" he asked slightly incredulous.

She huffed. "Of course not. Though the impulse to was almost overbearing," she admitted, biting her lip. "I … fell. Sort of."

Sirius caught her slight hesitation. "How did you fall? Why would anyone allow that thing to remain in anyone's path?"

Hermione sighed. "I was pulled."

Sirius' eyebrows shot up. "Pulled?"

Her face pulled into taught lines as she recalled the incident. "It was a monster…. There was smoke and eyes and hundreds of teeth. I thought it was going to eat me, but then I was thrust forward and suddenly I was falling."

She pulled her knees up to her chest, her eyes far away.

Sirius had never seen it, but he knew immediately what she spoke of. Sin. He'd heard enough stories about the monster to know how ugly and terrifying it was. Why it brought her here was the question.

"Well, my dear, I'd love to tell you that it was just your imagination," he said catching her attention. "But I'm afraid it is real."

Hermione simply stared at him.

Sirius rubbed at the scratch on his bedside table, his gaze thoughtful. "They call it Sin."

Hermione frowned. "Sin? As in Original Sin?"

Sirius blinked at the Muggle reference, it sounding vaguely familiar. Hermione shook her head. "Nevermind. Why do they call it Sin?"

Sirius shrugged. "The fayth of Yevon believe it is their punishment for using machina and hurting the planet or some such nonsense. They've outlawed the use of it."

"Machina?" Hermione questioned.

"Machinery."

She lifted a brow. "You know what that is?"

He gave her a wry smile, as he reached for his piece. She glanced down at his pistol, her eyebrows lifting. Glancing back up at him, she said, "Do you still have your wand?"

He slid his gun back into its holster, shaking his head. "Don't need one here."

Her brow furrowed briefly in question.

"They have magic here. Warriors and summoners can learn it, given enough experience and training. Mages have a more innate talent for it."

"Have you learned it?"

Sirius bowed his head smiling. Hermione's own lips quirked, wondering at his humor.

"What?"

He glanced up at her, his eyes merry. "Seems since I already was magical, I was able to use it right off the bat."

"So that means…"

Sirius nodded at her. "You probably will be able to as well."

Hermione seemed to think about this. He studied her features, hoping for some glimmer of recognition. Suddenly, he realized she was staring back and he blinked, sitting up.

"Uh, would you like to get cleaned up? We have running water," he offered as he stood, heading towards the door.

Hermione nodded slowly, still wondering at his regard. She shifted sideways, moving her legs off the bed before lifting herself to her feet. She immediately stumbled, falling into the side table.

Sirius was at her side in a second. "Are you alright?"

She winced as she allowed him to right her. "It's nothing. My ankle is just sore from when I tripped."

Sirius frowned. "When did you trip?"

"Right before I was pulled into the Veil."

She tried to walk on it again, and winced in pain.

"Here, sit down," Sirius said, lowering her back onto the bed.

When she was seated, he retook his own seat and lifted her foot into his lap.

Hermione's face remained screwed up as she watched him rest his hands on her bare ankle. Her eyes flicked to his bowed head as he muttered something before returning to her ankle where his hands were glowing green.

Sirius glanced up to see the muscles in her face relax as soothing warmth flowed into her from his hands. He watched her eyes close as a dreamy look crossed her face before she opened them to stare at him in awe.

He gave her a heart-stopping grin. "Better?"

She nodded. "Yes, thank you." Her eyes dropped to her ankle where his hands continued to caress. It was doing funny things to her insides that had nothing to do with magic. "Sirius?"

He seemed to realize what he was doing and released her. Sitting back he clapped his hands on his knees. "Well. I'll see about that bath for you."

He stood, heading for the door again. She called out to him as he reached it causing him to pause before turning slowly to meet her gaze.

"Could you teach me that?" she gestured to her ankle.

He zeroed in on her leg before lifting his gaze and nodding. "Of course."

After her bath, she did indeed feel much better. As she sat in the hot water, she also had time to contemplate this new Sirius. He was far more together and considerate, thinking before he spoke. The Sirius she knew was reckless and anxious. Chomping at the bit, as it were.

She had pitied the old Sirius, having his life taken so cruelly from him. This one had an air of danger about him, but he was controlled. Confident. Rather than scaring her, it did strange things to her stomach and made her cheeks heat at what that meant.

It wasn't a thought process meant to be followed however. He was Harry's godfather, old enough to be her father – even though he didn't look it. She put it off to hormones and her biological clock ticking. This younger more handsome Sirius, despite whatever illicit side activities he was operating, was put together and dependable. Not at all like the one had she known. Naturally, she was interested.

Finishing her bath, she dried off, wrapping the towel around her as she moved out from behind the screen. On a chair laid a set of clothes. Lifting them, she smiled. Sirius had found some black pants that widened at the bottoms and a more modest purple tank top to wear.

Slipping them on, she noted all the pockets in the tight fitting pants, wondering briefly what she'd put in them. Next, she tackled her hair, wrestling it into double plaits. She ripped her old tank as it was already torn, to tie them off at the ends. It was drafty underground, so she pulled Sirius' shirt back on, tying it the same as before.

She checked her appearance briefly in the mirror before turning for the door. Opening it, she stopped abruptly seeing as a wall of hard muscle blocked her way.

"Miss Hermione," the wall said.

Looking up, she noted a dark-haired man with roguishly charming good looks inclining his head at her.

"Yes?"

"I am Rhys. Captain Black wished me to escort you to him when you were finished."

Hermione blinked. "For what?"

Rhys lifted a brow. "Did you not want to start your training?"

Hermione blinked rapidly. "Oh, yes. Of course."

Rhys inclined his head and turned. "Follow me."

Hermione strode quickly to keep up. "Rhys, is it?"

"Aye."

"How do you know Si—Captain Black?"

"For all intents and purposes, he's my father."

"—Oh."

Rhys looked over his shoulder, a small smirk reminiscent of Sirius on his lips. "Does that shock you?"

She gave him a sheepish grin. "A little."

"You knew him in your other world?"

She nodded slowly, not sure what Sirius had told him.

He smiled easily. "It's alright. He's told me about his past life. Didn't quite believe him until you showed up in the same fashion."

She looked ahead. "I just don't understand why he doesn't remember me."

A beat. "Were you someone important to him?"

Hermione frowned. "Well, I suppose not."

"But he did know you?"

Hermione looked up at him and nodded.

"…Do you mind my asking how?" Rhys asked hesitantly.

Hermione turned to look straight again.

"I saved his life…"

-

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Sirius paced the training room. The calm he'd created since falling into this godforsaken world was slowly deteriorating. And all because of a blasted witch he couldn't remember!

Why was he drawn to her and what did she mean to him in his past life? He knew he could force it out of her. He didn't acquire all his wealth simply by saying please and playing nice. But it still would mean nothing to him if he didn't realize it himself.

Now, he'd promised to train her. Inadvertently, he'd taken on the role of her protector and didn't see a graceful way out of it. She was from his world that much was certain. He couldn't abandon her to a strange world where danger lurked around every corner. However, he couldn't have her underfoot and hope to keep operations running smoothly and quietly like before. Something had to be done.

The door opened then, and he paused in his plan to tread a hole in the floor. Rhys entered followed by Hermione. She looked around the large room. Sirius' gaze roved over her form, noting the close fit of her clothes. He knew they'd be tight, seeing as he'd never bought women's clothing before. However the effect was almost a little more than he could handle. His lips quirked when he saw she still wore his shirt though.

"Thank you, Rhys," he called, before giving him a dismissing nod.

Rhys nodded back before retreating from the room. But not before he bowed grandly to Hermione. "My lady."

She bit her lip, embarrassed, but nodded.

The wink he gave her before he disappeared irked Sirius. He cleared his throat to regain the witch's attention.

She glanced at him, her cheeks red.

He nodded to her, "Are the clothes to your liking then? I had to guess at your size so…"

She nodded her head. "Yes, they're fine. Thank you."

He nodded succinctly, still out of sorts.

"So." He started brusquely, startling her. "You want to learn how to defend yourself, right?"

Hermione blinked. "Uh, yeah. If that includes how to perform magic, then yes."

Sirius nodded, crossing his arms over his chest. "Good. Perhaps we can come to some sort of agreement then."

Hermione looked surprised. "Agreement?"

He nodded. "In exchange for lessons, you will give me your word that you will not speak of anything you see down here. If anyone asks, I am nothing more than a bartender and proprietor."

Hermione's gaze wavered as she considered. "Will you actually tell me what you do if I promise?"

Sirius nodded.

"Then I promise."

"Say it all."

Hermione sighed. "I hereby promise that in exchange for training, I will not speak of any activities I am privy to inside these walls. Happy?"

Sirius smirked. "Ecstatic," he deadpanned.

They commenced training then, him starting her out by focusing her energy using one of the four main elements; earth, fire, ice, and thunder; and using it on the clay statues at the other end of the room.

She was amazed at how easy it was. After a while though, she felt faint and eventually could no longer cast a spell. Looking to Sirius, he gave her an understanding smile as he walked forward.

"Aye, it works a little different here." His expression was apologetic. "You only have a certain amount of energy reserved for magic and once it's used up, you either have to drink this," he held up a vial of dark blue liquid. "Or sleep to regenerate."

She frowned at the vial. "What's it called?"

"Ether."

Hermione lifted a brow at him.

Sirius shrugged. "I didn't come up with the name, don't look at me." Handing it to her, he said, "Drink up. I promise it's not flammable."

Hermione rolled her eyes as she accepted the strange drink. Always nice to know you're not drinking something poisonous. Grimacing, she quickly threw it back. Sirius grinned as he watched her wipe her mouth as she swallowed.

Her eyes glazed over then before her body lit up briefly, leaving her with a dazed smile. Her dazzled eyes turned on him.

"That felt amazing."

Sirius smirked and nodded. "Aye. Now if you'd like, we can try out your magic on real fiends."

Hermione's smile dropped. "Real … fiends?"

-

A/N: Hope this answers some questions. I'm trying to mix Hogwarts magic with Spiran magic so I'm making up my own rules here. Again, a big thank you to everyone who has taken an interest in this story. Encouraging words are always welcome as I've never written these two together before. What with the horrible weather here and the darkness of winter right now, anything derogatory or even passive aggressive could possibly just make me cry =O Please read & review.

Next Chapter: Hermione learns what Overdrives are. Sirius tells her his story.