Disclaimer: You can sue me, if you want, but I think you'll end up paying more for your lawyers than you'd get from me. And then you'd see what you could buywith a stamp collection, a hideous metal armadillo, and a toothbrush. Ha. Ha. Ha.


Author's Note: Thanks so much to all my reviewers: this-love-is-sirius, R J Lupin's Kat, Padfootz-luvr, Sarmoti, SiriuslyFanatical, Queen Fidget of Beserkia, Writer-by-day, Killer Angel, xScenexBarbiex, SuperFreakk21, and MissPadfoot101! I'm so glad you all like it, and here's your update!

Cheers : )

i wanna dance with you in the rain.

P.S. For this chapter, you should know that Hermione can't use Legilimency on others, but she knows if it's being used on her.


A Christmas Tear

Christmas morning dawned bright and early for Hermione. The late winter sunrise cast a soft, pink glow through the thin curtains of the window, and reflected on the snowflakes that were still falling. Their lazy descent from the sky was quite the contrary to Hermione's restless night.

She didn't know why she hadn't been able to get to sleep, but the stream of thoughts winding through her head simply wouldn't stop. First she was worrying about the Order, and then that switched to Harry, then school, and her parents…

Rubbing her eyes and stretching like a cat, Hermione peered over the heavy, goose down covers she was huddled under, and looked to the foot of the bed, where there was a fairly large stack of presents. 'Christmas,' she remembered. But for some reason, the happiness that should have come with that recollection seemed to evade her. In fact, nothing had truly lifted her mood these past few days. She was irritated by that, because she knew she had absolutely no reason not to be happy. It was the holiday, a single precious week that should have left no time to worry about the Order or school.

Maybe it was her time of month. After all, she was scheduled to start again immediately on her return to Hogwarts. 'Yes,' Hermione decided, not wanting to further dissect her thoughts and emotions with herself. That was it.

Although she still wasn't feeling any better, the revelation seemed to make her slightly more lighthearted, and Hermione decided that before everyone else awoke, she would go downstairs to the kitchen and make herself a cup of coffee. Being tired and cranky the whole day from lack of sleep wouldn't help anything, either.

Tiptoeing quietly from the bedroom so as not to wake Ginny, Hermione closed the door silently and hurried downstairs. She could hear snoring coming from Harry's and Ron's room, and for a moment she contemplated sneaking in and cuddling up with Ron in his bed. But then she realized that he probably wouldn't like that. A small pang of jealousy gripped her heart as she thought about all those evenings in the common room when Ginny had been lying with her head in Harry's lap, teaching him how to braid her hair, then laughing and kissing him as he hopelessly tangled it. All Ron ever wanted to do was to go to his dormitory and snog.

Remembering these petty disappointments, Hermione felt frustrated with herself that she even cared. Ron was the sweetest boyfriend she ever had, he was just…clumsy.

The magic kettle on the stove began whistling 'I'm a little teapot, short and stout…', and Hermione gratefully broke from her thoughts. It couldn't be healthy to analyze one's relationship this way.

Taking a mug from a dusty cupboard, she spooned the aromatic concentrate into it and poured the boiling water to the rim. Honestly, it was time she gave it a rest, and just enjoyed her time with Ron. At least for the rest of the holidays.

"What're you thinking about?"

Hermione spun around in surprise, almost spilling her coffee. Sirius was leaning against the frame of the kitchen door, watching her closely. He was wearing only a pair of loose pants hanging low on his hips, and Hermione blushed, not knowing whether it was from staring at his muscled chest or from realizing that all she was wearing was Ron's Chudley Cannon's jersey and a pair of panties.

"Sirius," she said weakly. "You scared me. Would you like some coffee?"

He shook his head without smiling, his dark eyes just boring into hers, ignoring her last comment. "Youdidn't answer my question."

Hermione sighed, knowing she wouldn't be let off easily. Taking a few steps to the kitchen table, she sat in one of the chairs facing the doorway where Sirius was still standing.

He felt a slight disappointment to see her sit, because now he didn't have nearly as good a view of her as before. That thought in itself disgusted him. What would she think, if she knew how he regarded her?

"I'm worried about Harry," she finally said, not wanting to talk about Ron.

"Liar." He sounded as though he was making a joke, but being utterly serious at the same time.

Her eyes widened at his impertinence, but she did not check him. "Perhaps."

There was a pause. He nodded. "We don't have to talk."

Hermione looked at him, her eyes meeting his. She knew what he was doing, and she was entranced. "I know," she replied quietly. "You can already see everything I'm thinking…"

Sirius broke their contact in surprise. How had she known he was using Legilimency?

"So you know I was thinking about Ron." She smiled lightly.

He cursed himself. 'Damn.'

"It's okay," she continued. "I'm just being selfish. I need to get over the fact that he isn't as perfect as I wish he was."

"Hermione—" Sirius started. Her eyes raised up to his, and he saw the tears that were hiding behind them. At that moment, he wanted to tell her so much that there was nothing wrong with her, that she was perfect, and that it was Ron who was selfish.

But right then, Ginny appeared behind him, and slipped into the kitchen, breaking the moment.

"Hermione!" she exclaimed. "Presents! Come on!"

Hermione's face was immediately hidden behind a happy, carefree mask, as she smiled at Ginny. "Yes!"

Hermione let the redhead drag her from the kitchen, and into Ron and Harry's room, her talk with Sirius already forgotten.

The boys weren't thrilled to be woken so early, but when they saw the pile of presents, their moods changed significantly. Hermione had gotten Ron a Quaffle signed by the entire Chudley Cannons team, and he was absolutely overjoyed, immediately leaning over and hugging her.

Once the boys finished with all their presents, all four of them ran, laughing, up to the girls' room, and woke the whole house in the process. Hermione was rather curious to see what she had from Ron, and that turned out to be—as always—books. Actually, the majority of her presents were books, except for one. It was a small box, wrapped in gold paper, and tied with a red ribbon. There was no card.

Ron had moved over to see what Ginny was getting, because he was apparently bored with the predictability of Hermione's gifts, so no one saw her slip the bow off the box and open it. Silently, she pulled out another, smaller box from the original. It was a polished wood with an embellished clasp, and Hermione felt almost afraid to look inside. But of course, since curiosity is human nature, she couldn't resist, and tipped the contents into her hand.

It was a ring, she saw. No doubt expensive and old. The silver had lost some of its shine, and the turquoise stone it was set with had chipped a bit in places. Judging by its shape, Hermione saw it was a scarab beetle, a clear indication that this was some antique Egyptian trinket. She examined it more closely, admiring the intricate pattern of the silver frame around the gem.

She looked into the box once more, and noticed that there was a tiny, rolled up scrap of parchment. Fishing it out and unrolling it carefully, she began to read the scrawl.

Hermione,

I wish you a happy Christmas. I found this among some old family jewelry, and it struck me as one of a kind. I know you are not the type of girl to take pleasure in meaningless gifts such as these, but what you hold in your hand is slightly more valuable.

This is a ring come off the hand of Queen Cleopatra herself. As you know, magic at that time was boundless, and this ring is a relic of that time. Look at the turquoise beetle carefully, and you will see a set of hinges on one side. Open it.

Stunned, Hermione gently took hold of the stone and wiggled it till it loosened. Inside, she saw, there was another tiny gem, but this one looked like a pearl. Her eyes returned to the note.

Inside, you'll find a crystallized phoenix tear. I would describe to you everything it is capable of, but I am convinced that you already know. There might be only one thing that you don't, though: It symbolizes love.

"Hermione?" Ginny asked, noticing her silence for the past few minutes.

"Huh?" came the absentminded reply. A crystallized phoenix tear? This was incredible. There were perhaps fifty in the entire world, and one this old seemed almost inconceivable. But yet, Hermione believed everything written on that scrap of paper.

"Are you okay?"

"Of course," she answered, turning back to the other three who were watching her carefully. "I just started reading the book Ron got me," she added, gesturing to the open book in front of her.

They all fell for that one, as she had expected. Silently, she slipped the ring onto the third finger of her left hand. Her mind reeled from the surprise of it all. And who had sent it? Vaguely, she thought it might be a Death Eater trap, a portkey, or a spying device. But she doubted it. And last of all—did the person who had sent it actually admit to being in love with her?


A/N: Okay. Here's another strange chapter. I hope I didn't explain about the ring too much. And if I did, I'm sorry. I promise that the next chapter will get things moving more. PLEASE REVIEW!

Cheers : )

i wanna dance with you in the rain.

P.S. I hope everyone figured out that it was from Sirius…