A/N: Happy Belated Birthday to the Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter!
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. I don't make money from this fic.
August 22, 1979 London, England - Sirius and Hermione's Flat
Hermione was in the kitchen, her hair pulled back out of her face, and music playing softly on the radio in the living room. She was chopping up veggies for a chicken stir fry, one of Sirius's favorites. It was technically his night to cook, but since she'd gotten done at St. Mungo's early that day, she wanted to surprise him. She hummed along to the radio as she worked, hearing Sirius come in the door behind her.
"Hey, you." Sirius said, smiling as he saw her in the kitchen. "What are you doing? It's my night." he asked, hanging his keys on the peg by the door. They'd had to change their locks after the incident the month before, but luckily the landlord understood.
"Got off early." She shrugged. "I wanted stirfry and you've had to stay late here recently. I didn't think you'd be home so early, actually."
"Yeah, it was a light day for training. Something to do with a skirmish in Norfolk." he said.
"Why didn't you go?" Hermione asked. "Usually they take you to things like that."
"Moody thinks I'm 'still on the mend.' Bollocks, but if it means I get to see you a bit earlier, it's fine by me."
"Norfolk, wasn't that one of the areas that Remus reported werewolf activity on his return journey?" Hermione asked. Sirius nodded, leaning against the counter behind her.
"Sure was. Moody didn't have time to brief me, but sounded like Greyback's doing." He sighed.
"But it's completely the wrong phase in the lunar cycle for a werewolf attack." Hermione said, frowning as she grabbed a pepper to slice. "It's a new moon tonight."
"Doesn't matter to him, he'll kill with his bare hands as a wizard. He's ruthless." Sirius spat. "Frank told me about some of the cases he worked involving Greyback. Not pretty."
"You'd think that would make Moody want to take you more." Hermione said.
"They don't know the amount of interaction I have with Remus around the full moon, remember? They think we steer clear of him. If he knew how directly I was involved, and about my animagus… I have a feeling I'd rarely be home." He chuckled.
"Did Dumbledore reassign you yet, by the way?" Hermione asked, preparing the veggies to cook. "Lily said he reassigned James last week, and they're working together now. Less tailing Death Eaters, more confronting and tracking them down."
"I think he's much the same as Moody, personally." Sirius sighed. "Thinks I'm still on the mend and wants to give me time to heal up."
"They're not wrong, you know. Taking some time to heal isn't a bad thing. I know James and Lily are taking some time off from the Order."
"Yeah, I think she needed some time after her dad passed." Sirius sighed. "Man, what is this, the Year of Parental Death?"
"Whatever it is, I think it brought Lily and James closer together. They were fighting a lot before Aunt Effie and Uncle Fleamont passed. More than normal. But Lily really stepped up when shit hit the fan." Hermione said.
"She was his rock," Sirius agreed. "And now he's doing his damnedest to be hers." Hermione smiled at him over her shoulder.
"I know how that is." she said, adding the veggies to her skillet and covering it.
"I want to be like that." Sirius said simply.
"You are." Hermione said, turning around to look at him.
"I sometimes question how good of a job I do at protecting you. At being there for you, taking care of you." Sirius said, padding over to her and taking her into his arms.
"Sirius, you're more than I could ever ask for," She smiled up at him. "I can take care of myself, you know. But I will say this," she looked down, blushing. "You finally taught me how to ask for help."
"I'm still working on the asking for help thing." He said, nuzzling her neck. "We work very differently. But I'm glad we do. It seems like you're a piece of me that's been missing for far too long."
The pan on the stove gave a hiss and Hermione pulled away to check her veggies, turning down the heat and stirring them.
"You share my hopes and dreams, Hermione." Sirius said. "And I want you to be mine."
"I'm already yours, what are you talking about?" she frowned, but he veggies were too close to done to take her eyes off of them.
"Maybe one day you'll marry me?" he said. She took her veggies off the heat and turned around.
"You've said that quite a- Merlin." Hermione said, her hands flying to her mouth. Sirius knelt on one knee, a diamond ring in his hand. "Are you serious?"
"Well, I'm certainly not James." He said with a grin. She laughed, taking the ring from his hand.
"I don't know what to say." She murmured.
"Say yes." He said, rising and closing the space between them, brushing a stray hair that had escaped her hair tie off her face. She looked up at him, into his bright, grey eyes, and nodded.
"Yes, Sirius." She whispered. His face lit up and he picked her up, spinning her around the little kitchen.
"Just wait til I tell James! He's been trying to get me to propose for months. I told him I had to wait for the right time." he chuckled, giddy.
"You've been setting this up all this time," Hermione said with a grin. "Since the first time you said that to me, back when James and Lily got engaged!"
"You caught me." He chuckled.
"You've been planning this for over a year?"
"I've been planning this a lot longer than you'd think. Started planning it back in school, when I was helping James figure out how he was going to propose to Lily. But the final deciding factor was Aunt Euphemia." He said.
"What?" Hermione asked, her brows pulling together.
"Her last words to me, Hermione. The ones I wouldn't tell you?" He said, looking her over. "'Marry that girl, Sirius.' She wanted us to be together from the moment we told them. I was upset that she didn't get to see the ring."
"How long have you had it?" She asked, looking him over. "James carried Lily's ring for months."
"I just got it today. I've been going to the jeweler's every day for a month. Looking for the right ring. Everything they had was too flashy, or just didn't fit your style. This…" he said, taking the diamond and platinum solitaire ring from her, and slipping it on her left hand. "This is simply beautiful, just like you."
"I love you, Sirius." She murmured, looking up at him. He kissed her, this kiss different than any they'd shared before. Hermione could feel the love he had for her in her very soul, radiating through her. They finally broke apart, and Sirius smiled.
"I love you, too, Hermione."
There was a knock on the door just then, and Sirius frowned, looking in the direction of the door.
"Are you expecting anyone?" He asked. She frowned as well, shaking her head. Sirius released her and moved to the door, checking out the peephole before opening the door to reveal a worse-for-wear Remus, accompanied by James and Lily.
"I hope we're not intruding or anything." Remus said, running a hand over his face. "I just got a bit of bad news and needed the company."
"You're not intruding at all, Moony, I've told you that. You're always welcome in our house." Sirius said.
"Well, I'm glad you interrupted me while I was cooking, love. Looks like I need to make enough for three more." She laughed.
"How did he interrupt you?" Lily asked, crossing her arms and looking over Sirius's goofy grin carefully.
"He proposed." She said. Lily squealed, rushing to examine the ring.
"They finally have a decent ring in stock?" James asked. Sirius nodded, watching the girls' excitement. "Well I hope you're happy, mate. You lost me a hundred galleons."
"What did you bet on with stakes that high?" Sirius asked.
"He thought you'd make a scene in public. He was positive you would, actually." Remus said.
"Well, I mean, you're kinda a drama queen, Pads. I fully expected a spectacle." James said.
"He proposed in the kitchen, while I was a mess, and I couldn't be happier." Hermione said.
"And that's why I didn't make a scene." Sirius said. "I may be a drama queen, as you put it, Prongs, but Hermione isn't."
"Remus, you said you got a bit of bad news?" Hermione said, and Sirius returned to the kitchen to help her finish up dinner while their guests sat at the table nearby.
"Yeah. Mum passed away early this morning. Heart attack."
"Year of Parental Death." Sirius murmured under his breath, and Hermione whacked him with her wooden spoon.
"Dad's losing his mind, so I'll be staying with James and Lily for a bit." Remus continued.
"Let us know if you need a couch to crash on if married life gets to you a little too much." Sirius said, winking at James. Hermione heard it was a genuine offer, and based on Remus's smile, he did, too.
"I'm sorry for your loss, Remus." Hermione said. "But I know you'll probably get sick of hearing that in a day or two."
"I just needed to be with people who understand." He said, nodding and smiling up to Hermione. She handed her spoon to Sirius and moved to hug her friend.
"We're here for you, Remus. Always." She whispered. She stood again, looking him over. "I'm glad you came."
She returned to her stirfry once more, finally getting around to cooking without interruptions, though now the chatter of her friends joined the faint music coming from the radio in the living room. Sirius wrapped his arms around her from behind as she cooked and she smiled, content.