September, 1976.

Hermione woke up groggy, feeling something wet swiped across her cheek. She let out a groan and sunk down further in her pillow, waving her hands around to catch whatever creature that was disturbing her sleep. It had to be a creature; no one else would dare to bother her sleep unless they wanted to be buried six feet under.

It was only when her fingers caught soft, long fur did she pay attention to the panting sound near her ear. She immediately sat up and knocked her head against the deck of her bed. She felt him shift on the bed and two legs came into view as she rubbed her forehead furiously. Hermione thought of showing him what her punch can do, but stopped herself. Alas, he was her friend and they were both hungover.

"Why are you here, Sirius?" she whispered fervently. She was thankful the curtains were drawn. Her roommates would have a fit for not being warned about Sirius Black being in their room. She unconsciously started tugging her hand through her curls, knots slowly managing to dissolve. She could feel his eyes on her and when she turned to look at him, she froze.

He was sitting next to her, his body propped up on his elbows and strands of hair falling softly on his forehead as he carded his fingers through his hair. It infuriated her how utterly gorgeous he looked at the crack of dawn. Had he always looked so handsome? It surely didn't feel fair, she huffed mentally.

Hermione started, realizing she had been staring at him for a solid minute now. The corners of his lips tugged into a smirk as he looked at her and she scowled. He could continue looking good on her bed, she could care less. His gaze swept over her face and she shifted in her seat under the intense look. Clearing her throat, she gave him a pointed look.

Sirius let out a throaty chuckle, reminding her of how it was too early to be dealing with her friend. "Thought you might need one of my famous potions," he said with a wink, smile broadening as he tugged on one of her curls and it bounced back. His fascination for her hair was irrational but she didn't bother reminding him that.

Instead, she rolled her eyes. "And you couldn't wait until I joined you for breakfast, like we do every other time," she drawled with a half-exasperated, half-fond smile. Seemingly ignoring her remark, he hummed and tugged her close, holding her there with her side pressed into his warmth. Her body no longer felt tense, instead it was flooded by affection in her veins. She leaned into the embrace and shook her head in amusement.

"If you think you can distract me with one of your hugs, we have a problem," she mumbled.

"Don't worry, kitten. You can always come back for more than just one," he replied breezily, batting an absent-minded hand while smiling winningly again.

He tugged the blanket closer with the intention of wrapping it around the both of them, but she pushed it away. She rolled away first, before edging closer to the border of her bed. They were close enough that she could feel his breath, hot against her neck. Her hands slipped slightly as she hurried to move away and she felt the brief touch of lips on her jaw. Hermione heard his sharp intake of breath and shuddered slightly, scrambling to get off the bed before she did something she'd regret.

Her heartbeat pounded in her head—so loud that she could scarcely hear the rustling of covers as he got off the bed as well—but she ignored it. Instead, she focused on sporting a neutral expression. She was desperate enough to look for every memory of Severus Snape's blank face she had. He was the expert and she would learn. She pursed her lips and looked at him without the slightest raise of her brows.

A pair of grey eyes were pinned directly on her and he didn't seem too pleased at the lack of her reaction. She extended her hand, palm open to him and he gave her a confused look. She watched as realization dawned on him and he cleared his throat, also trying to hide how flustered he felt. She cajoled in amusement at the thought of a shy, timid Black and let out a snort.

Sirius raised a brow at her behaviour, sending a smattering of red across her cheeks. "Give me the potion," she reminded him.

He gave her a disappointed frown, scowling while his hand disappeared inside the pocket of his robes and emerged with a vial of sea blue liquid. Her eyes light up immediately at the sight of the end of her suffering and she snatched it away from him. She pulled out the cork and raised the edge of the glass to her lips, letting the potion bring her relief as she drank it.

She heard movement coming from Evans's bed and thought it was best if they both left, unless they wanted to face the wrath of the Prefect. Merlin knew what she would do if she found Hermione's best friend in the girl's dorm. She tugged on Sirius's hand, intertwining her fingers with his and dragged him out of the room, the soft sound of his footsteps following her own.

She finally let go of his hand once they settled on the velvet couch. The Common Room was empty, the only sound coming from the crackling fire. She chanced a glance up at Sirius and found that he was staring at her once again. She will not look away, she will not look away, she will not

"You could thank me, you know," he muttered and she eyed him with surprise for finally talking. He was being oddly quiet this morning. Finally, the awkwardness she felt vanished and she welcomed the familiarity with open arms.

She allowed a mischievous smile to seep through. "Oh, how awful of me to forget. Thank you for saving me like always, my Black Knight!" she gushed in a fake solemnity.

A wide smile bloomed on his lips at the nickname. "Don't thank me, dear lady—"

"You literally told me to thank you—"

"—no harm was done to your Black Knight's handsome body," he said with a haughty tone. She punched his arm and he let out a bark of laughter, consequently making her laugh as well.

"If you are done flirting with my best friend, perhaps you could come up and tell Peter where you hid all of his socks."

She turned around her seat to find Remus looking at them with his arms crossed and a stern expression. She would've taken him more seriously had he not been sporting his messy bed hair at the moment. Hermione bit down a fond smile and focused on what he'd said. She jumped away from Sirius for the second time in twenty minutes and stood next to her other best friend.

"You!" she gasped in shock. "Honestly. Why would you do that?"

His expression twisted in irritation and muttered something under his breath. She felt Remus stiffen beside her and watched him look at Sirius intently, probably listening to what he was saying due to his heightened senses. Her eyes widened when his orbs flashed amber, indicating the presence of Moony. Her hand instantly met his arm and she squeezed him gently.

"Moony, calm down," she continued to whisper gently, in an attempt to bring her friend back. Remus shook his head and looked at her with a scrutinizing gaze. She eyed him with confusion before she let out a huff. Too much was happening and it was not even eight o'clock.

Deciding that trying to understand everything on her own would be a lost cause at the moment, she strode away and climbed up the stairs. Hermione approached Peter as she entered the dorm. He was sitting on the floor, both of his hands hidden under the sea of clothes inside his trunk. James was sitting by his side, his legs crossed and a hand clutching a few strands of hair. She eyed him appraisingly and he shook his head when he noticed her. At least, he wasn't part of this prank.

Peter glanced up at her and got over his shocked expression rather quickly, giving her a wobbly smile. She felt bad for the poor boy and made sure to give Sirius a fierce glare as he slipped into the room, followed by Remus.

"Hey, 'Mione. Have you seen my socks? I think Padfoot pulled a prank on me again," Peter said with a fallen expression.

"Again?"

Sirius huffed. "He's not a little child. Wormtail can handle a prank, can't you?"

Peter shrunk in his seat and she didn't give him a chance to reply, immediately asking Sirius with narrowed eyes, "Where are his socks?"

He gave her an tired look, sighing and nodding at Peter's bed. "Under the bed, stuck them with a Sticking Charm."

Remus kneeled down next to the bed and one by one, each sock went back to Peter.

"Of course, you would use this talent of yours in pranks instead of your studies," she muttered under her breath but he heard her regardless.

He let out a scoff and when he finally met her eyes, he narrowed his gaze at her. She felt the edge of hostility creeping in and grimaced, knowing well this would be the start of yet another one of their fights.

He glared at her, his jaw set. "Of course, you're too much of a swot to give more than a backhanded compliment."

"You really think that?" she asked in genuine disbelief. He'd never mentioned something like this before and she looked at him confusedly. "I've given you genuine compliments numerous times, you know."

"You have." His smile was bitter and cracked. "But not the ones that matter."

She grasped his elbow when he turned on his heel to leave, but she refused to let him do so. Their fights were fast and sharp. They never left before clearing things up and fear crept in at the thought of him being mad at her for longer than usual. It felt unusual; the tight, cold expression he wore while he looked at her.

"Then tell me which ones matter," she said, a curious note in her voice. The muscles of his arm tightened but she continued. "I never meant to make you feel like this. Sirius, you are . . . you are my best friend. I mean every compliment I give you."

He was looking at her with a rather calculating glint in his eye, before he shook his head in what seemed like defeat. Her wrist tingled when he grabbed it, but the feeling disappeared as soon as he rid of her hold on his elbow. She staggered slightly—no longer being able to lean onto the weight and warmth of his body—and watched dejectedly at his retreating back.