The days seemed to roll past very slowly and the weeks even slower until at last it was the Christmas break. Nobody had mentioned the night in the room of requirements for a while and everything was starting to get back to normal. Sirius would be his usual cocky self, Remus turned back to his reading habits instead of watching everyone over the top of his book. And best of all Hermione came back to be friends with the Marauders. A week before Hogwarts was due to break up for Christmas six people were sitting in the middle of the common room, talking.

"Oi, Pete. Don't nick all of the chocolate frogs. You're not the only person here with a stomach!" snapped James while quickly swiping for the chocolate with his fast quidich reflexes.

"But he is the only one with one that could spread across the whole of Hogwarts." Muttered Sirius and Hermione lightly hit him on the arm.

"Don't be so rude!" She reprimanded him.

"Or what!"

"Or I'll set a highly skilled teenage witch on you!"

"Like you could take me on!"

"Who said that I was talking about me?"

"Then who were you talking about?"

"Lily!" Snapped Hermione with a laugh as Sirius pretended to faint in fear. Everybody laughed at his dramatics but then James Jumped up to his aid.

"Fear not damsel Sirius. For I will rescue you from the beautiful flower witch!" James ran over to Sirius and lifted him up in a fireman's carry and threw him onto the spare chair next to the fire.

"Hey that wasn't called for James this seat is cold. I want to get back to my other one. And since when did I become a damsel in distress?"

"Since Remus said so. You remember the day that Hermione came. And as you also know Moony is never wrong."

"I resented that mark before and my feelings to it have not changed! Anyway he could have just as easily said it about you!"

"But he didn't do you Remus. You find me amazingly attractive don't you?"

"But of course! No one can resist the James Potter charm!" Remus growled seductively draping his arms around James' chest.

"Dude! Hands off!" James shrieked jumping away from Remus' reach while everyone in the common room laughed at the show.

"Anyway!" Jumped in Lily before anyone got to rowdy that she would have to calm them down with force. "Are people going to go home for Christmas?"

James, Peter and Remus nodded. When every one looked at them they both turned their gazes to far off.

"Sirius. I thought that maybe you could come over to mine for Christmas. Like last year. It will be fun. Just promise me that this time you will not rig my bed to sing merry Christmas every time I fall asleep and you will be fine."

"Nah mate. I will be fine. It should be just family at Christmas."

"But you are family to us Siri."

"No look. Sorry mate, but I will feel more comfortable here. Plus we can't have our little 'Mione one her own the whole of the holidays can we."

"I guess not." Muttered James but he looked definitely crestfallen.

"Why aren't you going home, Hermione?"

Hermione and Sirius shared a knowing glance and then she cleared her throat and said "My family are a little to busy at the moment and apparently I would only get in the way. With I can believe in." Every one seemed to be giving her apologetic glances. "No don't feel sorry for me. No my parents are going on holiday together as a special anniversary or something and offered for me to come but I thought that they would have a better time if it was just the two of them." The apologetic looks seemed to be quickly retrieved by every one, except Sirius, but she gave him a small smile and he returned it.

Suddenly he got up and ran over and sat on Hermione's lap and started to squeal like an over exited ten year old girl.

"Us girlies are gunna have to have a proper girly time of it. As we have both are pronounced official girls. First I can do your hair. And then you can do my nails, and then we can have pillow fights in our short pyjamas. In a very girlie way!" Exclaimed Sirius in a girly voice. Clapping his hands in pretend excitement. Hermione groaned and shoved him off her lap so that he fell onto the floor.

"Somebody please save me from this. If I had known that I had to do girly stuff then I would never have agreed to stay at school." Whined Hermione

"I wonder how many times he the words girls or girlies?" Pondered James.

"It was four. I counted." Comented Remus Dryly. Lily smiled but got up and said good night to the group. Ever since Hermione had come Lily had been spending more and more time with the marauders and starting to like them all a lot better. James had repeatedly thanked Hermione for this but every time she did she just laughed at him saying that what is meant to be is meant to be! Every one else soon went to bed after Lily.

As if in fast forward the last week of term went by very quickly. And before they knew it, four of the group were boarding the Hogwarts express, leaving behind two friends.

Once all of the carriages were far away and out of sight from Sirius and Hermione they stopped waving into the distance and turned to each other.

"Soooo what do you want to do know. We have a whole week in each others company and I think that at least one of us will be mad by the end of it."

"Awww come on 'Mione I'm not that bad. And anyway I was thinking that while the others were away I could teach you all the tricks of the trades of the marauders and hopefully lighten you up about rule breaking."

"No you're not that bad but I have found a problem with your plan. I already know most of the secrets, Duh. I was best friends with Prongs Junior. Plus I think that I have broken more rules than the marauders ever have thank you."

"You think that I will believe that. No one can break as many rules as the marauders."

"You didn't see half the things that I and my friends did."

"Go on then. Give us an example of your amazing rule breaking."

"Well I'll tell you the first one because that wont give anything away in the future. In our first year me and Harry, Ron would have come too if he didn't have an infected hand at the time, had to sneak out at midnight and run out to the grounds to pick up a baby dragon and smuggle it out of the castle. Actually no that wasn't the first rule that I broke. I think that first rule that I broke was lying to a teacher about who tried to knock out the troll first. That was funny."

Sirius stood there, staring at her in amazement. "Are you trying to tell me that in your first year….."

"Well actually first term but go on."

"What. In your first term you and your friends had managed to become smugglers and start attacking trolls. You lot must be mental."

"Yup. But you loved us all the same."

"I did? Did I?"

"Mmm hmmm"

"A fatherly love?"

"Of course!"

"But I think that I felt a different type of love for you Hermione." Whispered Sirius moving closer to the girl that was frozen in shock. "I think that I already love you!" breathed out Sirius. Her breath was tickling his face as he moved even closer to her. They were practically touching now.

Hermione's breath caught in her throat as she realised what was happening. She tried to stop it by telling him that it wasn't right. But the word failed to come to her as Sirius closed the remaining gap between them and pushed his lips against hers. It was gentle and sweet until she began to kiss him back. Then his kiss got more hungry and passionate and he tried to open her mouth but suddenly she pulled away.

"Sirius I….." she tried to say but the sentence hung in the air as Sirius smiled and leaned in again. But thins time she pulled away first. "No, Sirius. I'm sorry I can't!" Pleaded Hermione with tears in her eyes as she turned and fled down the hall back to the common room.

Sirius stood there amazed at what had happened. After he had told someone that he loved her and kissed her she had turned away from him. He felt oddly numb as he turned to make to his own dorm.

'I have just been thrown away by love.' He thought to him self. Then he got angry. 'Damn her. It was all of her fault. She was the one that messed ME around. Why did she have to cry? Why did she have to run away? Why did she have to say no?

Hermione ran up to her room with tears streaming freely down her face. 'Damn him. Damn him to hell. He shouldn't have done that. He knows where I come from. Where I will eventually go back to. He knows that I'm not allowed to like him in that way. That would just be wrong, Hermione. Why does he have to like me? Why did he kiss me? Why did I have to pull away? Why do I like him back?