"You're a bit like a lady, fussing over clothes." Hermione said, hoping to invoke some sort of humored reaction from Sirius, as she watched him shed his third choice of shirt and throw it to the floor. Hermione flicked her wand toward the discarded clothing and sent it flying back into the closet on it's hanger.
"I want to make the best impression possible." Sirius grumbled. "The blue one was better. Higher collar." He grumbled as he dug back into the wardrobe and took a shirt out he'd already had on out.
"There is something I forgot to mention, just because I don't think about it much." Hermione said, causing Sirius to freeze.
"And that is?" Sirius ask, looking Hermione's face over for clues.
"My father is nine years older than my mother." Hermione said. Sirius looked as if he may say something, but he simply returned to his fussing.
"There is twice that number between you and I, sweet wife." Sirius said, tugging at his collar. Hermione sighed, shaking her head.
"Are you worried about the tattoos?" Hermione ask. "Because my father actually has a couple, Sirius. He was in the army."
"Should I just glamor them away?" Sirius ask, straining to look himself over in the mirror. "Maybe just the ones on my hand?" Sirius flexed his hand, wiggling his fingers where three knuckles had runes tattooed to them.
"I don't think you should change a thing about yourself." Hermione said. "At all. Honesty, full out honesty."
"Remind me their names, again." Sirius said. "Not that I'm going to venture anything other than Mr. and Mrs. Granger."
"Howard and Jean." Hermione replied. "And they're really not that scary, Sirius." She moved across the room and finished buttoning the shirt he'd chosen before fixing his collar. "Given time, I'm sure they'll be quite fond of you. And if not, well, at least I will live to see them forgive me eventually thanks to you saving me." She sighed and moved away, opening her own wardrobe to find something to wear.
"You're scared they won't talk to you anymore?" Sirius ask, plopping down at the foot of their bed.
"I am. We've already grown so apart, from my magic. I've seen them two to three weeks a year since starting Hogwarts. They've always been so understanding, so supportive. They know this is my world, and that this is where I belong. They know that..." Sirius looked over to see Hermione's shoulders shaking slightly, and he stood from his place on the bed, wrapping her in a warm, comforting embrace from behind. "Sirius, what if this is too much?"
"I don't know that I am the best to give you advice for conflict with parents, love." Sirius spoke gently into her hair. "But I can tell you this much. Your parents, they love you. They will want you to be in their lives, so they will learn to understand." He placed a kiss on the top of her wild hair.
"Do you think so?" Hermione ask, turning around and looking into his eyes with her own water orbs swimming full of sorrow and hope.
"I certainly hope." Sirius replied, pulling away to let Hermione finish dressing.
Standing outside her childhood home, the ocean of nerves that had been stirring deep inside threatened to overtake her in a sea of hopelessness. She hadn't told her parents who the guest was that would be coming with her, only that their dinner wouldn't be for three, but four. Sirius squeezed her hand gently and tugged at his suit coat, trying to straighten himself out. "Whenever you're ready, doll." Sirius whispered. "The place isn't warded, so just say the word and I'll disapperate us out if you need me to."
"Thank you, Sirius." Hermione whispered, her words swirling before her in the cold air. "I mean it."
"It is quite my pleasure, I assure you." Sirius replied, giving her a wink ans she led the way up the path. It was a sweet, small townhouse with a flower bed and a couple trees out front. She froze before the door, holding to his hand for dear life.
"Ready?" Hermione ask, glancing sideways at her husband.
"As I'll ever be." He nodded as her small hand rapped at the door. After a brief moment, the thick door swung open revealing a smiling woman, who quickly gathered Hermione into a tight embrace. Sirius stepped quietly inside as mother and daughter hugged, shutting the door quietly behind him to keep away the cold. The house was equally nice inside, mostly painted white with artifacts that looked like they may belong in a muggle museum on shelves along the wall to his left, a large mirror to his right. Sirius stood awkwardly by and waited for their embrace to break. When Jean Granger stepped back, her smile, which Sirius noticed was where Hermione got hers, fell sharply.
"Mione, Dear." Her mother said, stepping back. "You should er- introduce your friend... Howard, Hermione is home!" She called over her shoulder in an overly nervous voice. Sirius watched the woman, who had sleek, darkly colored brown hair, but Hermione's same warm chocolate eyes and smile. A man soon appeared in the doorway, a tall gentlemen with nearly solid grey, curly hair and thick spectacles sitting on the edge of his nose. Sirius made a mental note that Hermione's looks were from her mother, but it was obvious the studious nature and her curls were handed down from her father. He smiled, too, and gather Hermione in a great hug before cutting his eyes sharply to Sirius, who was still standing beside the door.
"Your guest, cupcake?" Her father ask, holding his gaze on Sirius. Hermione looked pale, but walked over and took Sirius by the hand, leading him closer.
"Mum, Dad, this is Sirius Black. Sirius, my mother, Jean, and father, Howard." Hermione introduced the group, shrugging awkwardly. Sirius shook both their hands, being extra sure to be firm and sure when shaking Howard's.
"Mr and Mrs Granger." Sirius said with what Hermione recognized as his best 'get out of trouble' smile. Hermione wondered if perhaps Sirius' looks and natural charm would help her through this meeting.
"Forgive me, well, rudeness, Mr. Black," Jean began, still standing more near her husband and away from Sirius. "Let's have a seat in the parlor." She led the group through the hallway, and into another very white room, which contained several floral landscape paintings and a pale green set of seats around a oak coffee table. "Do make yourself comfortable." She said, gesturing to the seats. Hermione guided Sirius to sit on one side of the table, facing where her parents were taking their own seats on the other.
"So, Sirius? was it?" Howard said, his eyes still cutting Sirius apart. Sirius nodded and swallowed with a 'gulp', waiting for the older man to continue. "How do you know our Hermione?"
"She saved my life when I was a very lost man." Sirius said, without a second thought on his answer. Howard nodded.
"I see." he said, looking from Sirius to Hermione.
"So now he's returned the favor." Hermione said, speaking up. Seeing the questioning and highly confused looks on her parent's faces, Hermione decided to keep speaking. "Perhaps I should explain..."
Hermione spoke for a long while, pausing only when one of her parents had questions. She started from the beginning, speaking slowly, explaining everything in great detail. She went through Sirius' false imprisonment, his relationship to Harry, everything. It finally came down to the law of her marriage, and her age being changed, and her parents had stopped speaking altogether. She finished her tale by retelling of the trip to Rome and the attack Sirius saved her from, and made sure to explain that had she not married Sirius someone horrid could've taken her. When Hermione was finished explaining, she sat quietly, nervously, waiting for a reaction. The silence in the room was deafening, and Hermione couldn't help but feel horrible for Sirius, who sat bunched tensely to himself, eyes on the floor. "So, you gave up your freedom, after waiting so long, just to keep our little girl safe?" Her father ask, surprising everyone in the room. "Just like that?"
"I, er-" Sirius sputtered, and nodded. "My best mate had to also. Get married I mean. It's not just Hermione being picked out for it."
"That's fairly selfless of you though, isn't it?" Howard said, his gaze finally softening. Sirius couldn't help but feel that this conversation would be quite different if Hermione hadn't omitted the part about their required copulation. Sirius was unsure what to say, and sat staring blankly until the whole party jumped at the sound of a timer going off.
"Oh, my duck!" Jean cried, moving for the kitchen. "Everyone file on into the dining room." She called. Hermione took Sirius' hand and guided him into the next room where they were seated just as Jean brought in a very lovely roast duck with vegetables, piling Sirius' plate high. Howard was still watching Sirius like a hawk on a rabbit, making him nervous.
"Sirius." he said, demanding his attention. "I don't mean to make you feel so uncomfortable. But you must know how all this sounds to us. But I can read people fairly well, and I can tell you're alright."
"Thank you, sir." Sirius said, smiling at last.
"You also seem to mean business about protecting her." Jean commented.
"I do." Sirius said firmly. The couple nodded, and the dinner fell into a silence soiled only by the sounds of quiet eating and utensils against the plates. Sirius was unsure what to do, or say, and he kept his gaze low until spoken to again.
"We'd like to be as much a part of this arrangement as we can be." Howard said, looking from his wife to his daughter. "We want you both around."
"Of course, sir." Sirius said, nodding his understanding.
Once home, Sirius immediately fell face down on the bed, laying motionless in the soft embrace his pillows allowed. He could hear Hermione showering in the adjoining bathroom, but he laid still and tried to ease the tension from his joints. The meeting wasn't so bad, but they had requested that Hermione come alone to their Christmas party, something that Sirius was actually felt a bit grateful for. Hermione had taken serious offense to the suggestion, but on the way home Sirius had won her over on the idea. He was, after all, not very well versed in muggle affairs anyway. "Sirius?" he heard her speak before he felt the mattress dip slightly beside him.
"Yes, sweet witch?" Sirius replied, rolling to face her.
"Was it that bad?" she ask nervously. Sirius smiled gently to her.
"No, love, it was much better than I ever expected." he replied. Hermione pulled the covers back and crawled into the bed, snuggling down into the soft nest.
"Thank you for being patient with me. I knew that getting married first was the better idea." she said with a large yawn.
"You're usually right. I'm very glad we didn't drop it on them at the party though." Sirius said with a chuckle.
"That was sheer panicked thinking is all." Hermione commented. Sirius sighed as he thought of the night they'd just endured.
"We do have one small problem, you realize." Sirius said, catching Hermione's attention. She fought back the fluffy quilt and sat up, facing her husband better as to ask what he meant, but Sirius only smiled. "You convinced them that this-" he gestured between the two of them, "is a marriage in name only. Remember that we do have to have a baby, eventually."
"I know." she said, flopping back into the pillows. "I talked to Olivia about helping me put that off, actually. It's not illegal, and I have several options."
"You and she can discuss them when I fetch her tomorrow." Sirius said, shrugging off his shirt and trousers before sliding under the covers also.
"Fetch her?" Hermione ask, confused.
"She'll be staying with us, for a while. Remus is going to have to be a spy for the Order in the werewolf pack, and one of his conditions is Olivia's safety. So she'll be with us." Hermione looked horrified by the thought of what Sirius was telling her.
"That's awful!" she squealed. Sirius nodded and let out a long, deep breath.
"Believe me, doll. I already fought that fight. I don't want to send my best friend to the slaughter. Raise his child with his widow. And if he's found out they may very well kill him. But we're at war." Hermione scooted over closer to Sirius, where he wrapped an arm around her.
"He's a good wizard." she said, not sure if she was comforting herself or Sirius more. She was very fond of Remus.
"He's a bloody brilliant wizard. Amazing duelist. He'll be fine as long as his cover is kept." Sirius replied. "For now, lets just focus on getting some rest before his send off tomorrow, shall we?" He ask. Hermione nodded and snuggled close into his side, something she didn't normally do when they were about to sleep, but Sirius didn't mind. He held her close as they both drifted off into dreams.
Quick Update! Hope you all enjoyed the new chapter with Hermione and Sirius in focus. Thanks for reading my story!
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