Disclaimer: I wish I could abolish these but since I can't… you all know how this goes. I own nothing copyrighted by anyone else, blah blah blah etc.
Dedicated to Steph (Nymphean), who refused to read unless I at least alluded to R/S slash, and said it would be funnier if I did. So here's my twist…
Authour's Note: I know they don't have electricity, therefore no refridgerators, but bear with me.
"How strange this feeling that my life's begun at last
This change, can people really fall in love so fast?'
- In My Life, Les Miserables
***~~~***
'So?'
Sirius jumped back, wand in hand, read to bolt, at the voice that came out of the shadows. But he relaxed as Remus stepped out towards him.
'So what?' he shot back, throwing himself onto the bed where his things were laid out.
'You know what I mean.'' Remus smiled slyly, leaning against a bedpost. 'What's up with you and Hermione?'
'Nothing! Why? What did she say? Did she say anything to you?' Sirius quickly shut up, knowing he had said too much.
Remus laughed and moved down onto the bed so that he was sitting next to his best friend. 'I saw you guys during the meeting. I mean, c'mon!'
Sirius groaned. 'Am I that obvious?' His answer was just a laugh. They sat in silence for a few minutes until Sirius remembered something from his previous conversation with Hermione. 'Remus, are you gay?'
Remus burst out laughing. 'What? Where did that come from?'
Sirius shrugged. 'I just heard that there are rumours floating around about you and me, and I wondered…'
Remus became quiet and reached for Sirius' hand. 'Yes, I am.'
'OK, well, I can adjust to that.'
Remus started laughing again. 'You should've seen the look on your face. I was only joking.'
Sirius visibly relaxed. 'Very funny. I mean, I didn't think you were, but I haven't seen you with a girlfriend since we were in Hogwarts, and so I wondered if your 'sentiments' had changed.'
Remus got up and walked over to his bed, still chuckling. 'You were in Azkaban for a lot of those years, stupid. You didn't see me at all. But no, I'm still liking the ladies. I'm just picky, and I haven't found the one yet.'
'You might want to get a move on, or you'll end up like Snape. Doomed to be a childless bachelor for the rest of his life.'
'Ooh, I'm shaking in my little booties.' Remus started to unpack things from his trunk. 'But Padfoot, you and Hermione, is this a mutual thing?'
Sirius fell back on his bed, covering his face with his hands. 'No! I'm just some old guy and she's-'
'Hey, hey!' Remus cut in. 'A little less of the old, thank you very much. I'm two months older than you!'
'But you see what I'm getting at.'
Remus quickly changed into nightclothes, and got in to bed. 'I don't think you have anything to worry about. Hermione has always been mature for her age, and you've always been immature for yours, so I think you should meet somewhere in the middle.' This speech was answered with a grunt, and an well-aimed pillow. Remus tossed it back, and smiled, settling down as the lights dimmed. He hadn't been lying; Remus really didn't think that Sirius would have trouble with Hermione. The werewolf had seen the way the other two were towards each other earlier in the evening. If Hermione didn't feel an amorous emotion towards Sirius now, she would eventually. Remus had the rare capability of truly being able to read people, and it had been surprisingly easy to read Hermione, as if she had been an open book.
Across the room, it was awhile longer until Sirius' breathing slowed into a steady sleeping rhythm. Seems that this new Hermione problem was bothering him even more than he let on, even to Remus.
***~~~***
Sirius woke a few hours later, and blearily looked at his magical watch. 12:30 PM. He stiffly got out of bed and padded over to his open trunk. Without looking, he grabbed clothes and haphazardly pulled them on.
'Sorry to burst your bubble Padfoot, but you managed to put your head through an arm hole,' Remus mumbled, still buried under blankets.
'Sod off! I'm still half-asleep, and exhausted to boot. I feel like I slept on a rock.'
Remus sat up, and rubbed his head vigorously, making his salt and pepper hair stick up like porcupine quills. 'Then go back to bed.'
'I'm afraid I can't do that,' Sirius replied in passing, searching for a missing shoe.
'Does all of this running around have anything to do with a certain pretty brunette residing somewhere in the castle?' Remus asked mischievously.
'Who, Minerva? Don't you think she's a bit old for me, Moony?' Sirius quipped.
'I don't want to have to dumb this down for you.'
Sirius shot him a dirty look, and having found the shoe, walked quickly towards Hermione's room, clearly a man with a purpose.
***~~~***
When Sirius entered the Head Girl's room, it was apparent that its inhabitant was not awake, so he went to wake Hermione up. Upon entering her bedroom, he was assaulted with an expanse of tanned smooth skin tangled with the bed sheets.
Although he stepped lightly, Hermione woke up and snapped around when Sirius came in.
'I'm kind of naked,' she said, having quickly grabbed her sheet, hiding herself from Sirius' transfixed gaze.
'I noticed,' Sirius said, getting a little tense.
She just stared at him, clearly waiting for something.
Sirius suddenly clued in. 'Oh…you want me to…' He made a turning motion with his fingers.
'That would be nice.'
Sirius quickly shaded his eyes and turned around so that Hermione could get dressed.
'Thanks.'
'You can look now,' Hermione said as she brushed by the older man.
Sirius peeked between his spread fingers, but seeing no large spaces of skin, he took his hands down and followed Hermione into the kitchen area.
'Wow,' he exclaimed, glancing around. 'I never knew you Head people had such large rooms. It's like a flat in here.'
Hermione turned away from the fridge, juice in hand, clearly surprised. 'You mean you never went into Harry's parents' rooms when they were Head Boy and Girl?'
Sirius shrugged. 'There was no need. James and Lily hung out in Gryffindor Common Room with us most of the time anyway. And if we needed to play pranks on them, we just did it when they were around. Plus, I really think they needed all the privacy they could get that year. I mean, with their special training, and the Order of Phoenix.'
'Don't forget the procreation of Harry.'
'No, that came later, after the rise of Voldemort…' he trailed off.
'Coffee?' Hermione asked, bringing the pot over to the table, where Sirius was seated, switching the subject to one less morbid.
'Yes, thanks.' Sipping at the steaming mug, Sirius sat back and luxuriated in this scene of apparent domestic happiness. Meanwhile across the table, Hermione had similar thoughts, but quickly shook herself out of them.
'So, what have you been doing since I saw you last?'
'Is this what we've been forced to resort to? Idle chitchat?' Sirius joked, thoroughly enjoying riling Hermione up.
'Well…I…you…' she sputtered. 'It's not like you came up with anything better, Snuffles.'
Sirius spit his coffee out at this surprisingly resurrected nickname, narrowly missing the object of his newfound affection.
Hermione fell into a fit of giggles. ' At least I know you'll always be entertaining.'
Sirius mock-glared at her, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. Hermione noticed this, and getting up, walked around the table with her napkin and wiped his mouth for him. 'That's why you have a napkin. Use it.'
'Thanks…mum.' Sirius grinned mischievously. (A/N: I know, he does that a lot.)
A quick flick of the wrist sent Hermione's ball-up napkin straight into Sirius' face. Smack!
'Oh, real mature.'
'This coming from a man who, though now in his forties, still believes that Dungbombs are funny.'
At just the mention of the gag props, Sirius started laughing.
'See? Exactly my point.'
The two spent the next hour amiably trading insults and conversation, although a few more napkins were thrown.
Sirius sat watching Hermione, throwing in barbs from time to time so that she wouldn't notice his staring. He loved listening to her talk, almost being able to see the wheels turning inside her beautiful head. But while filled with affection, he was also filled with wonder and confusion. How was it possible that he was falling head over heels for this girl? It had only been one day, and he wasn't able to think straight. What was it about Hermione that made him want to be with her all of the time? She was a temptress, plain and simple. Although she may be unaware, she was a siren, a seductress. And Sirius had fallen firmly and permanently under her spell.
Meanwhile, Hermione was also studying her tablemate. Before her sat a man whom she had known for a large part of her life, but who still remained a mystery. She had never failed to solve any problem put before her, but Sirius was proving to be a very hard puzzle. Equally hard to figure out were her feelings about him, seeing as every time they were together, she was hit with new emotions. Hermione knew that Sirius was studying her as she talked, and suddenly she desperately wanted to know how and what he thought of her.
Hermione was about to pour them both more coffee when Professor McGonagall's magnified voice echoed through the room. 'The meeting will begin in fifteen minutes in the Staff Room. It is mandatory; all must attend. Attendance will be taken, so don't think of bunking off, especially you Sirius Black. That is all.'
Hermione laughed outright at this announcement while Sirius looked affronted. 'She thinks she has me sussed. But she hasn't been my teacher in over twenty years, and I have new tricks up my sleeve. Just you wait! You will rue the day you crossed me Minerva McGonagall!' He jokingly shook his fist at the air.
'You're just as bad as the twins.' Hermione whacked him on the arm in passing.
'That's not true. If anything, they're just as bad as I am. I've been doing this longer.' Sirius followed her like a lost puppy.
But Hermione abruptly stopped and turned around quickly, so that Sirius, who had been following a bit too closely, bumped into her, and so they stood closely, chest to chest. Sirius moved to one side to let her pass, but Hermione (who had the same idea) happened to move to that side as well. This process repeated itself a few times until Sirius grabbed Hermione's hands, forcing her to stop, causing them both to laugh. They stood there for a few minutes, just looking at each other, Sirius not letting go of Hermione's hands. Gripped by a sudden impulse, he bent his head down, and she was drawn up by a magnetic energy. But when their lips were almost touching, a noise was heard from the entranceway. Sirius and Hermione sprang away from each other guiltily, and started to fidget with anything in reach. These actions spoke louder than anything else did, and so when Harry and Ron entered the room, they were quite aware that something had gone on.
'Are you guys okay?' Harry asked, looking from one to the other. Sirius turned away and Hermione just blushed.
'Did something happen between you two?' Ron asked suspiciously, his hands forming fist instinctively. Both he and Harry had been very surprised to find Sirius in Hermione's room.
Hermione smiled at this small gesture, one quite reminiscent of the days when their relationship wasn't a not-so distant memory.'
Sirius cleared his throat. 'No, of course not. We were…getting ready to go to the…meeting! I mean, you heard Professor McGonagall. No skipping. I do believe we are going to be late if we don't hurry up. Let's go!' He grabbed Harry and pulled him out of the room. Hermione and Ron slowly followed, her trying to avoid the searching, inquisitive looks he kept throwing her way.
***~~~***
'Lovely day, isn't it Minerva?' Sirius cheerfully called out after entering the room, glad to be away from Ron and his smoldering anger. The short walk from Hermione's room to the Staff Room had been so tension-filled that Sirius was doubting his ability to go near Ron again without getting socked in the eye. He grabbed a croissant and proceeded over to sit next to Hermione, ignoring Ron's pointed looks.
'Are you going to continue to torment me for the rest of our time together, Mr. Black?' The teacher asked, only in part dreading the answer.
'Why of course. It is my sworn duty, mission and honour. But deep down, you know you like it.'
Professor McGonagall just sniffed in disdain and walked away.
Hermione, having watched the repartee, laughed quietly, earning a stunning smile from her seat companion. Feelings crept up inside that she had been desperately trying to subdue all morning.
'Now is really not the time!' she thought to herself. 'Calm yourself, and focus on the task at hand. Sirius is only a regular guy, a buddy of yours. Just a guy with a smile that makes you melt, and gorgeous eyes, a totally kissable mouth, and a rock hard body on top of everything else. But none of this matters! Oh, who am I kidding? I'm falling in love with my best friend's godfather! But at least he's smart, so its really not a Lockhart thing all over again.'
Luckily for Hermione, Professor Dumbledore entered with Ginny and Draco and she was sufficiently distracted for a few more hours.
***~~~***
'And that's the layout of Malfoy Manor. Any questions?' Draco turned back to face the group.
The people who were still awake groaned. Everyone else was sprawled around the room. Ron's head was propped up on his hand but fell off onto the table with a 'thud!' He jumped up. 'I was awake, I swear!'
'Guys, I know its boring. Hell, I'd rather be anywhere else. I could think of many things I'd rather be doing on a gorgeous Saturday afternoon,' he winked at Ginny, 'but this is important. Boring but vital information. I really don't want you guys to suddenly forget where you're going during the attack and then get trapped in a hidden dungeon. So, I'll go over this later in the week. And then maybe I'll make you lot take a test on everything I've told you.'
'Do we get a cookie if we do well?' Ginny asked.
'Virginia, I thought we decided that we weren't going to talk about our secret nicknames in public!' he joked. 'No cookies.'
Ginny pouted, but then grinned devilishly, thinking of all the ways she could 'punish' Draco later.
Professor Dumbledore quickly cleared his throat, bringing everyone's thoughts back to the present situation.
'We have a few more hours until dinner, and for most of you, that can be free time, but it's a time as good as any to start special training.' He looked down at a piece of parchment. 'Hermione, you're first. Where and when will she meet you, Sirius?'
'Whenever,' he mumbled.
'Hermione, why don't you just stay behind and discuss the matter with Mr. Black, if he can keep his mind off of personal business.'
Sirius scowled at his former Headmaster, silently wishing for some bad things to happen to the old man.
'When do you want to start?' Hermione voice piped up beside him.
'Umm, I have to go get the room all ready and we both have to change, so why don't you meet me in a half hour?' Sirius said all this while staring at his shoes, not trusting himself to look at the alluring brunette beside him.
'Sound fine. But where am I supposed to meet you?'
'Oh.' Sirius had to think about it for a minute. 'Walk to the library, and the training room is the 4th door to the left of it.' Without a good-bye, Sirius started to walk off, but was stopped when Hermione grabbed his arm gently.
'Sirius, are you okay? Is there anything bothering you? You can always talk to me, I've been told I'm a good listener,' she said, stepping closer, her scent filling the air.
'No, I'm fine,' Sirius managed to get out, although his voice wobbled and squeaked.
'Good. I'll see you in a bit.' Hermione flashed him a brilliant smile and walked off to her room.
Sirius slowly followed her, off in a search of a badly needed cold shower.
***~~~***
Hermione hurried down to the training room, pulling her hair into a ponytail as she went. Getting ready had surprisingly taken longer than she had expected, and she hated being late for anything, especially anything that had to do with Sirius Black. She found the training room with no trouble, and when she entered it Sirius was already waiting for her.
'I'm sorry that I'm late, but-' Sirius interrupted her.
'Its fine. Now the first thing I want to teach is a more advanced blocking charm than you've learned.'
'Whoa, slow down. No 'hey, Hermione, how's it going?' You just want to jump into everything without letting me get my bearings? Let me look around for a minute.'
'Fine,' Sirius conceded. 'But only for a minute; we really do have to cram a lot of stuff in before dinner.'
Hermione walked around, getting her first good look at the training room. A huge spongy mat that ran almost wall to wall mainly covered the floor. Various weapons hung on the walls, and as Hermione quickly found out, they also were contained in the many chests and wardrobes situated around the room.
'Are you ready?' Sirius called out.
She quickly turned back to face him. 'I'm good to go.'
'Good. Like I was saying before, the first thing I'm going to teach you is a blocking charm. It's called Obstructis and is really more of a shield. The great thing about this charm is that it lasts for 30-60 seconds, depending on how strongly you cast it. If it's cast correctly you should see a purple glow surround you, but only you can see it, so its not a dead give away to the enemy. When the glow disappears, the charm has worn off. Any questions?'
'Are there any unfortunate aspects of this charm?'
'I feel like a bloody professor but good question. I forgot to add that this charm will block any spell, curse, hex etc. thrown at you, except for the Unforgivaeables. Anything else?'
Hermione nodded. 'Where exactly is this used? I mean, it sounds like a great idea, but its pretty distracting having to recast it every minute.'
'Good point,' Sirius chuckled. 'This charm is mostly used when someone is taking someone else by surprise, like an ambush or something like that. It's used as a shield until you can find a larger, more permanent cover. Ready to learn?'
'Always.'
They practiced the charm for a half-hour, with Hermione getting better at it every time she cast it. Finally, Sirius stopped her.
'Do you think you're ready to use this to defend yourself from real spells?'
Hermione placed her hands on her hips, and shot him an indescribable look. 'I'm ready for anything you can throw at me, Mr. Black.'
Sirius laughed, but then took on a stern expression. 'Fine then Ms. Granger, when you're ready. But you should move around, so I can chase you, like this is a real fight.'
Hermione shrugged. 'On your count.'
'3…2…1…'
'Obstructis!'
'Petrificus Totalus!'
Hermione felt the now-familiar purple glow envelope her, and watched as the body-binding spell bounced harmlessly off her. She broke out in a run to find cover, knowing that her time with the shield would run out much quicker than she expected. The glow was already fading as she pushed over a table and jumped behind it, narrowly missing a hex Sirius threw at her running figure. Quickly casting the shield charm again, Hermione peeked around the wood to find Sirius. He was advancing very quickly, wand pointed towards her. 'You can use magic against me too, so its not like I'm just hunting you.'
'Fine,' Hermione replied, but when her curse bounced off him, she knew that he had cast the shield charm too.
Catching the look on her face, Sirius shook his head. 'I'm supposed to be teaching you, to be testing you, remember? I can't make this easy for you. The real fight won't be easy.'
'I know that,' Hermione muttered, and thew another curse at him, as she ran for a different cover.
The fighting went on for a few minutes, with things getting a little more heated. But as Hermione ducked around a wardrobe to get a better shot at Sirius, she dropped her wand, and bending down to pick it up, she failed to notice that her purple glow had completely faded.
Seeing her at a disadvantage, Sirius shot a charm towards her. 'Immobulus!' The charm froze her in a rising stance. Sirius walked towards her quickly, and placed his wand tip at her throat. 'Bang. You're dead.'
'Fuck.' That single word echoed through the room. Sirius unfroze Hermione and pulled her up to a standing position, both breathing heavily from the action.
Sirius looked down into her eyes and was quite surprised to see tears threatening to spill over. Concerned, he reached for her hands. 'Mione, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be so harsh, but I had to…'
Hermione sniffed, blinking the tears away. 'No, it wasn't you that made me upset. It's just that I dropped my wand, and you caught me in my mistake. I never do that!'
Sirius bent his tall, lean body in several different places to peer into Hermione's downcast face. 'Don't fret about it. With practice, nothing will go wrong. Your progress has already been so rapid; I don't think that you have anything to worry about.'
Hermione looked up at him, eyes sparkling. 'Do you really think that?'
'Of course I do. I think you're amazing. You're beautiful, and smart, and you're quick, and you'll be able to protect yourself in any situation you get yourself into.' Sirius ran a finger tenderly down her cheek, eliciting a trembling smile. But as if he had been burned, he pulled his hand back, and turned to leave. He couldn't let her know how he felt, not yet, not while it was still all so new, and sudden, and confusing. He had to leave, get out while he still could, not matter what state he left Hermione in.
Sirius had already reached the door, where Hermione called out to him. 'Sirius! Don't…' her voice had a pleading tone in it that struck something in him, giving him hope. He stopped walking, and turned to look at her, his expression unreadable.
Hermione smiled slightly, still a bit confused. But that seemed to be enough invitation for Sirius, and he slowly started walking back across the room. Hermione walked over to meet him, watching as his smile appeared and grew with every step. When they met up, Sirius again reached for her hands. Shaking hair out of her eyes, Hermione smiled anxiously up at him, and moved a bit closer until they were chest to chest. Sirius looked down into her eyes, and saw an emotion that he would have never expected her to have: doubt. He would have pulled back again, but he quickly caught the hope that lay in her gaze as well, the hope that he knew was mirrored in his eyes as well. Sirius hesitantly leaned down, as Hermione moved up, until they met in the middle. At the first contact of lips, Hermione sighed quietly. Hearing this, Sirius smiled slightly, but leaned in to deepen the kiss, and Hermione's arms lifted to wrap themselves around his neck of their own accord. The taste and feel of her lips on his own intoxicated Sirius, and his forgotten wand dropped from his nerveless fingers. He then felt his way up her back, enjoying the movement of the bones and muscles under the smooth skin.
Hermione pulled back, ending the kiss, and laughed at Sirius' sound of frustration. Without saying a word, she disengaged herself from his arms, and started to walk out of the training room.
Sirius stood motionless until the girl reach the door. 'Hermione, wait!' he called out, confused as she had been, but not ready to have her leave him yet.
The brunette turned back, a triumphant smile on her face. 'I wondered how long it would take you to call me back.'
'You bloody tease,' he smiled as well as he drew her to him once more.
'Yeah.' Suddenly needing to feel Sirius close to her, Hermione kissed him again. This was a kiss full of want and need, desire and lust, but also of an urgency that the two were only just beginning to comprehend.
When the kiss ended, Sirius held his siren closely, tight enough for her to hear his heartbeat.
'I don't understand how this all happened so fast,' came the small murmur of Hermione's voice.
'Shhh…'Sirius kissed the top of her head. 'I don't either, but with everything I've been through, I've learned to take the good things I've been given and not argue about the why's or the how's. We'll have plenty of time for analyzing stuff later. Now I just want to be here with you, like this. Is that enough?'
Hermione's answer was a small nod, which turned into a snuggle against Sirius' chest, as if the lack of distance between the two was still much. He breathed in the smell of her hair, and his arms tightened reflexively around her, as if to protect her from the air itself.
'So I'm going to assume that practice time is over?'
A/N: Ooohh…
