Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. I don't make money from this fic.
June 29, 1977 London, England - Diagon Alley, Sirius's Flat
Sirius unlocked the door and pushed it open, picking up the box he'd sat down. James and Hermione were behind him, each carrying their own boxes. He walked into the dusty, one bedroom flat and sat his box on the island separating the kitchen and living area.
"Not a bad little place, mate. Sure you're ready to handle living on your own, though?" James asked, setting his box down by the wall.
"Yeah. I think I need this, you know? And when Uncle Alphard left me all that money- I knew this was the next step. I love your parents, James, and they've always been good to me, but I feel like a charity case there." Sirius said, leaning on the counter.
"Well, Mum told me to tell you you're always welcome for Sunday lunch. Or anytime, really." James said. Hermione sat her box on top of Sirius's and looked around the sparse flat.
"What are you going to do when you go back to school?" Hermione asked. Sirius shrugged.
"The landlord knows I'm still in school, so he offered me half rent during the school he was rather desperate to rent the place out, really. I'll only be here on hols, anyway. It's just for a year, and a stasis charm should keep the dust at bay and the food from spoiling." He told her. She nodded.
"I'm proud of you," She said with a smile. "You've really thought this through." He grinned back at her.
"And I wanted you lot to know, you're more than welcome to stay with me, any time you need it. That goes for Lily, too, James." He said, seriously. James nodded, understanding that Sirius was offering his place up as a safehouse.
"So when's the housewarming party?" Hermione asked. Sirius snorted.
"Why do I need one of those?" He asked.
"I was under the impression that you liked to drink, and also enjoyed free stuff, though perhaps I was wrong." Hermione said, smirking at him.
"Drinking and free stuff?" Sirius asked. "How do I do this?" Hermione chuckled.
"I'll help you out with the details." Hermione said.
"Have I mentioned how lost I'd be without you, 'Mione?" he asked, seriously.
"You don't need to. It's pretty obvious." Hermione said, crossing the room and pecking him on the cheek before opening the box on the counter and plucking her wand from her back pocket. She waved her wand and with a few quick incantations, the objects inside found their spots in the kitchen, enlarging themselves upon Hermione's spell.
"Well, are you two just gonna stand around, or are you going to unpack?" Hermione asked.
"Considering there's only two boxes, I didn't think there was that much to unpack." James said.
"Hermione helped me 's better at those kinds of spells than I am." Sirius grinned, looking at James. "The top box is the living room, bottom is bedroom."
"I'll let you handle your bedroom, Pads. Don't need to know what goes on in there, anyhow." James said, grabbing the top box and performing the same incantations Hermione had. Furniture, books, and even a few knick knacks flew out of the box, settling themselves into the once-bare room.
"Nice couch and tables, Pads." James said, appreciatively. ""Mione pick those too?"
"No, she didn't want leather, said it's too hard to maintain." Sirius chuckled.
"And you'll see what I mean before long." Hermione quipped.
"I swear, you two act like you're married already." James said, shaking his head.
"Oh, like you should talk!" Sirius said, "Lily has you wrapped around her little finger so tightly, sometimes I'm afraid you'll snap." he saw his friend blush at that, which made Sirius grin wider.
"So are you two official yet?" Hermione asked.
"I think so? She's stopped trying to get me to not kiss her in public anymore." James said. Hermione snorted.
"As adorable as that is, James, you need to talk to her." she laughed.
"I know. I'm just afraid she'll tell me to sod off," He said.
"Mate, she lets you kiss her in public. If she was going to tell you to sod off, she'd punch you for even trying that." Sirius said, shaking his head.
"You've got a point." He said. "Think she'll come to Peter's birthday party if I invite her?"
"If she doesn't come for you, she'll come for Hermione." Sirius said.
"Thanks for that vote of confidence, mate." James retorted.
"Any time. Could you pop back over to your house and double check our room, though, Prongs? I swear I packed that blanket Aunt Effie bought me in with the the living room stuff." Sirius said, looking around the room for something.
"I think it's on your bed, Pads, sure. But if you want alone time with your girl, all you have to do is say so." James said, dropping him a wink before heading out the door. Sirius shook his head, feeling a slight heat rising in his cheeks. Hermione looked him over.
"So you wanted alone time, eh?" She asked with a smile, padding over to him and looking up into his face. Sirius smiled down at her, his hand coming up to stroke her face softly.
"Of course I did." He said, his eyes locking with hers. "I wanted to tell you something."
"Oh?" Hermione asked, her eyebrows shooting up. "Something you couldn't say with James around? I'm shocked."
"Well, yeah. Nosey git doesn't need to know all my personal matters, you know." Sirius said with a smirk. "I just wanted you to know, you're more than welcome to stay with me during the holidays." Hermione frowned.
"You already told us that." Hermione said. "Me and James both, just now. You said we're more than welcome to stay whenever we need to."
"I know. And that offer stands, love. But for you," He said, closing the space between them and leaning down, his face inches from hers. "You're welcome to stay whenever you want to. And you get the added bonus of not having to crash on the couch." his voice had deepened, and he slipped a hand around Hermione's waist. He watched her blush and draw her bottom lip between her teeth and he couldn't help but kiss her. His eyes fluttered closed as he felt her slip her arms around his neck. The kiss was short, but it conveyed all the emotion Sirius had such a hard time expressing verbally.
"So you're say- you want me to sleep with you?" Hermione asked, when their lips parted. He rested his forehead against hers.
"I'd love for you to. But I want it to be on your time. You decide when the time is right. I'll be here, when you're ready." He said seriously. "And even if you just want to get away from Aunt Effie's sometime. I know you love cuddling, 'Mione, but if you do need a place to crash, you can have my bed. I'll take the couch."
"Never knew you were such a gentleman, Sirius." She smiled.
"I try." He shrugged. They heard the door open again and looked over to see james coming in with a blanket over his arm and a letter in his hand.
"If you two are quite done making kissy faces at each other," James said, "We've gotten a letter. From Dumbledore. There's an open meeting for the Order. We've been invited."
"Where's it at?" Sirius said, breaking away from Hermione and striding across the small living room, taking the parchment and scanning it. Hermione had followed him and the three of them gathered around the paper.
"Well, this should be interesting." James said, scanning the names and address of the meeting.
"The Prewett boys have their own flat in muggle London?" Hermione asked.
"Must have moved out after graduation. Supposed that's why it's not till next month, to set their flat straight." Sirius said.
"Sirius." Hermione said, looking up at him. "You're not going to do anything stupid are you?"
"Define stupid." He said.
"Punching Gideon in the face. Hexing Gideon in his own home. Generally acting like a buffoon at an Order meeting, open or otherwise." Hermione deadpanned.
"Now that you've made me aware that these are all things I should not do," Sirius said, "I won't. Doesn't mean I won't glare at Gideon from across the room, though." Sirius said, and Hermione groaned, looking to James for back up. He merely shrugged.
"Like I said, this should be interesting."
July 22, 1977 London, England - Prewetts' Flat
Sirius and Hermione stood at the door to the Prewetts' flat, and Sirius knocked six times, as per the instructions. Tap tap, tap tap, tap tap. The door opened and Fabien ushered them in quietly, before shutting the door and turning to greet them.
"Sirius, Hermione, good to see you! James, Lily, Remus, and Peter showed up just before you. I assume that wasn't an accident?" He asked, smiling at them.
"You requested staggered arrival, you got staggered arrival." Sirius said, shaking the former Quidditch captain's hand.
"Dumbledore's not shown up yet, he should be here shortly. Everyone else is in the living room, just through there." Fabien said, pointing the way. Sirius and Hermione started to move away, but Fabien stopped them.
"Oh, and Hermione?" He said. "About what Gideon did at Slughorn's party… I'm just hearing about that. I wanted to apologize for my brother. I'll make sure he behaves." He told her.
"Thanks, Fabien." Hermione said with a smile, and Sirius made eye contact with the older boy, giving him a nod. Hermione took Sirius's hand and lead him into the next room. All the furniture had been moved against the walls, and all sorts of chairs were strewn about the room; Hermione spotted Lily and James talking to an older couple. Lily waved Hermione over to them and they scrunched together to make room for the two.
"Hermione, this is Frank and Alice Longbottom, they're aurors. Guys, this is James and Sirius's cousin, Hermione Potter." Lily said, introducing her. Hermione shook each of their hands in turn.
"Yes, I've heard a bit about you. Rumors fly when an exchange student comes to Hogwarts, you know." Alice said, smiling brightly. "We left Hogwarts about three years ago. Lily's right, we're aurors, but only just."
"Completed the training just last month." Frank said. "Been working for the Order between training. It's been great to be out there making a difference even though we couldn't do much by the book."
"How's the program?" James asked. "Is it as hard as they say?"
"Harder." Frank said. "N.E.W.T. level defense was nothing compared to the first year."
"I think I want to do it." James said, looking to Sirius. Sirius nodded.
"Course you do, James. You never back down from a challenge, do you?" Sirius snorted, but quickly pulled himself together when the room went quiet. Dumbledore glided through the room and everyone found a seat as he looked out over the assembled party. There was close to twenty-five people crowded into the little flat, but there was a perfect silence as they waited for Dumbledore to speak.
"Welcome, friends of the Order. Many of you gathered here tonight," He began, trying to make eye contact with as many members of his audience as he could, "are still students, seeking to join the Order once you graduate. Others are sympathizers to our cause. And still, others are current members, who have been working along with me and the Ministry to track the movement and activity of the Dark group known as the Death Eaters, led by a man who calls himself Lord Voldemort." There were shivers and grumbles across the room at the mention of the name, but that did not stop Dumbledore from continuing.
"As such, this meeting was organized primarily for those seeking to join to make contacts within the Order. But know this: all of you here tonight have been entrusted to keep the Order a secret. Everything from where the meetings are held to who is a member, outside of meetings, is not relevant information. When you are inducted into the Order, you will take a vow. It is not quite as binding as an Unbreakable Vow, but it will make spilling secrets of the Order voluntarily extremely...unpleasant. Don't worry though, the vow itself is painless, and as long as your intentions are pure, you will not have to worry about the vow."Dumbledore's gaze drifted over Remus and Peter, sitting together on the other side of the room, for a long moment. When he finally broke his gaze, he clapped once, smiling.
"Right! On with the festivities, I believe there is food in the kitchen. Please, do mingle, chat. Making contacts is never a bad idea, indeed." Dumbledore said, striding amongst the crowd and headed for the kitchen, where Sirius could smell something akin to a stew cooking. He met Hermione's gaze and she gave him a half-scared look.
"Still feel up to doing this?" She asked.
"If it means protecting the ones I love, of course." Sirius said, squeezing her hand. "Now let's go get some of that stew."
Later That Night, London, England - Diagon Alley
Sirius and Hermione had decided to stay the night at his flat after the Open Meeting, given it was closer than the Potter residence and Hermione hadn't wanted Sirius travelling alone. He'd offered the couch to James and Lily as well, but James had insisted on taking Lily home, and Remus and Peter were staying with James for the summer, anyway.
Hermione had never been in Diagon Alley after dark, and Sirius could tell she was a bit nervous about the experience. As they walked quickly down the cobblestone street, Sirius had the inexplicable feeling of being followed, the hairs on the back of his neck raising. He held Hermione's hand as they walked, and he felt her squeeze his hand, something she didn't normally do out of the blue unless trying to get his attention. She sensed it, too, then. Sirius passed up the turnoff to his flat, not wanting to lead whomever was tailing them straight to his flat. He noticed Hermione reaching for her wand and squeezed her hand. She looked up at him, and he shook his head once. Not yet.He thought. He took the next side road, trying to make a circle and hopefully see who was tracking them.
As they turned the corner, Sirius saw three shadows behind them. Shit, they were outnumbered. They were slightly head, and he decided to take a chance and whisper to Hermione after they turned the corner.
"We'll turn at the next street, about face and draw our wands. Okay?" he whispered. Hermione squared her jaw and nodded, squeezing his hand once more. They kept their pace steady and Sirius fought to keep his hand away from his wand until the last possible moment. Adrenaline was coursing through his system as they approached the turn.
As quickly as they had turned, Hermione and Sirius drew their wands, pointing them back towards the direction they came from. Sirius watched the three shadows approaching. They wore masks, and black cloaks. Death Eaters.
"How very clever," Said the tallest one. Hermione knew that voice, and even if she didn't, the long blonde hair visible despite his robes gave him away. "Unfortunately, it seems you're out numbered." Lucius Malfoy drawled.
"Get the girl."