I apologize for taking so long. I really had absolutly no idea how to continue with it, and it being summer, and me being bored, I wrote another chapter. The winner of the name vote was Lost Time, so those of you returning to Unknown to find it with a different name, now have a reason. Hopefully you don't all hate me for taking so long, and if you do, I totally don't blame you. Swearing in this chapter folks, so if you're under 14 please sensor yourself, Anyways, here it is:

Disclaimed: Anything you recognize from the books or pop culture is not mine and if it was I would be happy... but not me. Unfortunate world... I think so.

New Chapter: Lost Time

Neither Sirius nor Hermione got very much sleep that night. Both were kept awake burdened by their own thoughts and memories. Sirius just couldn't shake the image of Hermione's eyes, filled with shame and complete helplessness. He had never seen someone with so much sadness, so much hope lost in desolate isolation… unless you counted his time in Azkaban.

It took his brain an unusually long time to wrap his mind around that conclusion and thus, sitting up all night listening to the subject laying heavily on his thoughts, cry quietly to the darkness, he decided times like these called for chocolate chip pancakes.

Things were going to change in this house, he decided, a smirk appearing on his face as he lay in the bed. Too long had it been the subject of depression and hopelessness. They could put paint on the walls but they couldn't change the past, but they could change the future. No longer would she have to suffer alone like he had so long ago.

This and the fact that the crying had ceased and he heard Hermione shift in the bed across the hall from his own, her breathing steady, comforted him enough for his mind to slip into the a light but steady sleep.

He was in the dark again, walking along in the lonely darkness. Lost and confused he walked on, puzzled at the fact that he was back. He wondered slowly if his romp in the real world had been just a colourful dream, a dream that had come to an unfortunate end.

Taking a deep breath he looked down again and swallowed the bile that had risen in the back of his throat. The glass was there. It was always there, always a constant always keeping him from the reality he so desperately fought for.

Fear slowly ate up his calm, and the time seemed to go by so quickly, a mirage of reality and soon he was twitching, waiting for any new sound to come, so tense that he was ready to scream at any moment.

Sirius Black, the man who had gone through more hell in his 30 years than most people go through in a life-time was ready to die. He was ready to get out of the hell that had held him for so many years he couldn't keep count anymore.

A slow realization hit him, and it almost stopped his heart at the same time. What if this was death? It most certainly wasn't life. It was his punishment, his burden, and he couldn't take it anymore. He took his fist and smashed it down on the glass floor an angry scream escaping his silenced lips, and felt his hand smash through it; then he began falling again plummeting to another level of darkness.

Sirius woke with a start, a falling sensation leaving his stomach in the dream. Perspiration making his body stick to the hot sheets. It took him a moment to realize where he was. It took him another moment to think back on whether or not he had made a noise in real life. Judging by the silence of the house; he hadn't.

It was just about dawn and light spilled fourth and through his window and onto the foot of his pink bedspread. He had to do something about that, he decided with a frown. The old house echoed with silence and he was glad that Hermione had finally gotten some sleep.

He sat up and stretched, listening to the popping of joints and the crack of his back. He ran his fingers through his hair to rid it of any residual bed head, before getting up and donning some pants. He grabbed a shirt and then made his way down the hallway towards the stairs, as quietly as he could. He still felt a little weak, but his strength was slowly returning to him.

He had passed Hermione's room in the hall and it had been quite silent behind the door, this assured him slightly that it would stay that way, at least until he started cooking. He made his way down the stairs and entered the kitchen. His plan was to do this the muggle way, but his mind was still numb from the dream, his heart still beating twice as fast.

Everything was just too silent. The tick of the clock in the living room was consoling, but it wasn't enough, it was slower than his quickened heart rate. He took his wand out of his pocket and cast a silencing charm on the room before walking over to the stereo and flicking it on. Hermione's music came blasting through and the buzz in his head lessoned somewhat, but it still remained in his chest.

It stayed in his chest hidden deep under the flesh, and frankly it scared the shit out of him. Slowly he went to the liquor cabinet and got out some firewhiskey. He took a shot to dull his brain and decided to sit for a moment, allowing the alcohol to burn on the way down.

He glanced around the room, willing himself to find a distraction. He then noticed how full the liquor cabinet was, apricot brandy was dominant, that wasn't the shit the others drank. He let out a sigh and turned up the music, the feeling weighing heavily on his thoughts.

He then began to take out the things he needed to make the aforementioned pancakes. He had the recipe memorized, years of living with a depressed werewolf and a love sick stag had conditioned his brain into fooling around in the kitchen with chocolate and sugary cakes, that, and chocolate was awesome for hangovers.

Hermione woke up to ringing silence running through her ears. She yawned and stretched her tired limbs. Her eyes hurt. A lot. She had been up most of the night. Unable to stop crying, she felt like a stupid little girl for even telling Sirius.

Her brain froze for a moment. Sirius… knew. She didn't even want to face him again, the thought of running away came up briefly in her mind, but she pushed it back; angry at herself for even thinking about it. She was a grown woman, and she didn't run away. She had never run away, and she wouldn't start now.

Her stomach lurched at the thought of seeing Sirius again, afraid of his judgment, she had made a stupid mistake, one that in her right mind was something she would have to live with for the rest of her life. She knew it was stupid, and she knew over all that it hadn't been the right way to deal with it.

Somewhere deep inside of her, she was afraid, afraid of the rage she had felt fill her veins that night, she was afraid it would return. She suppressed the fear back into the little ball she kept in the back of her mind before it could envelope her completely. A cold chill went down her spine and she curled herself into a ball under her light covers.

"Please, please…" She spoke to her pillow, "God, make me strong." She whispered. A silent prayer she hadn't used since she was a child, left her lips before she could stop them. It gave her an odd feeling of solace in a place that up until now, had felt like a punishment.

A long shivering sigh raked her small form, and with slow deliberation she sat up, creating a wall of nausea in the pit of her stomach. Swallowing it down with determination and crossing her legs. Her chest hurt, and she felt so foolish crying over something that was so far in the past.

Her entire body hurt from exhaustion, and she allowed herself to slump over her legs for a moment, some vertebra in her back cracked, and it felt better for a moment. Sitting back up and smoothing her tear dampened hair, she blinked up at her reflection in the mirror across the room; barely recognizing the woman staring back. So many things about her had changed, her reflection had gone from a kid to a woman in a matter of two years; and after that, from the bitter hostile warrior she had turned herself into, with sharp features and a hollow face, and now it was scars and bags under her eyes.

It seemed that every time she looked in the mirror she had to squint to recognize herself, and it scared her slightly. A long hard sigh escaped her dry lips and she got up, tearing her eyes off of the mirror and opened the door. Hoping nothing would intercept her on the way to the bathroom for a super hot shower.

Unfortunately, it wasn't to be. As soon as she opened the door she was hit with the smell of something cooking downstairs. A sense of panic hit her before she could stop it, Sirius, was cooking. She had never seen him cook before, and she never wanted to see him cook. He was indeed, a Maurader. A small part of her was still afraid for the cleanliness of the kitchen, a smile quirked her lips for the faintest of seconds as she remembered the time before the war, before she came back to Earth, and almost ran down the stairs to save her kitchen.

As she leaped of the last stair, she moved through the silencing spell and realized that her stereo was on and blasting her music. She skidded to a stop and listened for a moment. "Shit…" she muttered, having been found out, a blush falling across her cheeks as the guitar hit a grinding solo. She heard Sirius in the kitchen screeching out the guitar verbally, then he shouting out the next line just a little too early, and then laughing at himself.

A small grin appeared on her face, before she buried it back under a stern look, and walked into the kitchen. There she found something only a hand full of people could ever be called witness to seeing.

Sirius had a flipper in one hand and was using it to play 'air guitar,' he was wearing her apron that read, 'CAUTION, I can go from hostess to bitch in 2.3 seconds.' He had a giant stack of chocolate chip pancakes on one plate and was in the process of cooking more in 2 frying pans. The song slowed down slightly and Sirius, who still hadn't noticed she was standing in the doorway, now lowered his 'guitar' and threw it on the counter, before picking up a frying pan and manually flipping the chocolate chip cakes using a flick of his wrist.

She watched as they flew into the air and landed with a splat in the pan. Sirius had a smile of satisfaction on his face as he placed the pan back on the heat. "Coffee?" he asked, before she could say anything. Hermione cocked an eyebrow; she didn't think he knew she was there.

He looked up at her, his eyes sparkling with good humor and grinned, what she could only describe as a dog grin. Finally she nodded, and walked into the kitchen, taking in the damage as she went.

It wasn't terrible, but the counter was sticky and covered in batter, chocolate smears covered the stove top and Sirius, who didn't seem to care, had a splotch of flour in his hair. He came back with her coffee and a plate of pancakes for her and plunked it in front of her.

She stared up at him for a moment, and he grinned. "Only returning the favor love; seeing as you made me breakfast yesterday." He explained. "Hangover potion doesn't count as a breakfast." Hermione stated indignantly. "Oh most of the time it does." Sirius countered, "Although, how you found my secret recipe, I still can't figure out." He added, walking back over to the stove top and checking the bottoms of the pancakes.

Hermione chuckled, "That's an easy one. Remus knows it by heart." She stated looking down at her plate of pancakes, suddenly hungry. She guessed crying all night did that to people. Sirius laughed, "Now that, I can believe." He stated. Hermione wrinkled her nose.

"Nasty potion that one, hot sauce and coffee?" Hermione criticized scrunching up her nose. Sirius shrugged, "Best one I've come across though." Sirius stated with a shrug, he flashed a grin over his shoulder from where he was standing and Hermione smiled at him. Hermione glanced down at her plate and reached for the syrup, drizzling the soft fluffy cakes with it before replacing it back on the table.

"I didn't know you cooked." She stated inquiringly. Sirius laughed, "I know the basics, these came in handy with a pissed off, chocolate loving, werewolf in the house, and a love sick Stag. It was a good bet that at least one of them was angry with me." Sirius stated with a wink, he set the last frying pan in the sink and used his wand to magic the dishes clean; before coming over and sitting across from her.

Hermione knew he was trying to make up for last night, and with grim realization figured out that he had heard her crying, and then with a bit of panic realized she still looked like she had been crying. Hotness spread across her cheeks and she looked up to see Sirius in mid-pancake. She was thankful he hadn't mentioned it yet; he looked up at her and sent her a reassuring smile, apparently trying to convince her to have some pancake.

Hermione picked up her utensils and took a bite, it was true, they were good, better than she could do, and her dad had always made them for her when she was little if she had a bad day. Sadness bit at her stomach as she the suppressed memory of this flooded back, and she stared down at the little round cakes on her dish and realized that Sirius was probably using the same recipe.

A knot formed in her throat, and before she could stop it, a tear fell down her cheek and on to the stack of pancakes. She clenched her fists to try and stop, but Sirius had already noticed. "They can't be that bad." Sirius stated, his silver blue eyes filling with concern.

Hermione wiped the tears away. "They aren't, they're lovely really, it's just my dad used to make them for me when I little and had a bad day." She stated, attempting a watery smile. Sirius nodded, trying to understand, wishing he hadn't made pancakes. Hermione made herself take another bite and swallowed it, her mouth feeling dry.

"I'm sorry." Sirius apologized, reaching out and taking her hand awkwardly. Hermione stared at him for a moment, and then sent him a wet smile. The kitchen was silent for a moment as the two of them struggled to find something to say to each other.

Finally Sirius let go, and stood, walking over to the window, his eyes elsewhere. "I wish there was something I could have done to help." He stated looking out over the large yard behind the house. Hermione shook her head.

"You couldn't have done anything Sirius, no one could have. It was my fault, I wouldn't have told you about it anyways. I didn't tell anyone. I wanted something else, I wanted an escape from the damn war, and what did I get? Nothing but what I was trying to run from in the first place." Hermione looked up at him, her eyes begging for him to understand. She had lasted so many years now without anyone knowing.

Sirius turned around, searching her face, noting more tears ready to flow on her already wet cheeks. Her chest heaved in and out as she tried to get her emotions in check. It broke him on the inside to see someone so beautiful in so much pain, her slender form slumped over his failed pancakes, her head in her hands, as she stared into his eyes. Sirius licked his lips, searching for the right words.

"It wasn't your fault love. Everyone wanted to escape the war. Everyone knew what the war was doing, and you were taken advantage of, I've yet to find someone who hasn't been. You're not stupid Hermione. You are anything but stupid, but you aren't a god either, it was a big mistake, but it doesn't mean you were responsible, we all do stupid things in times like that. You aren't the only one, I made mistakes too." Sirius glanced down to his bare feet, and then back up at Hermione, who sniffed.

Sirius cocked an eyebrow and walked over to her, "You don't believe me do you?" He whispered seriously. Hermione glanced up at him, his eyes were ice cold, and for a moment she was frightened. He tore off his shirt, the apron flying across the room, revealing a rock hard, but skinny body, covered in scars and tattoos.

A scowl crossed his face as he looked down at his own bare chest and closed the space in between them. "This is my mistake Hermione, all of these." He stated in a voice that made a chill go through her spine. It was almost savage. He motioned towards his chest, there was a tally tattooed on it, 6 lines all together.

"I've lost the most important people in my life, I left Harry and the Order behind, and I was too stupid to argue with James over being secret keeper. I'm a horrible Godfather, and I've failed. Every promise I've ever made has been broken." Sirius spat, his eyes flashed.

Hermione watched him a moment, her complexion paling, her jaw hardening. "No." She stated finally, in a voice barely above a whisper. She stood up, her own hard eyes meeting his, the fear he had seen in them before had been exchanged with anger, and they stood there and stared at each other long and hard.

"You can't fucking think that." Hermione stated through her teeth, seething. "Now you know how I feel." Sirius stated leveling off. Hermione made a sound somewhere between a grunt and a scream and stormed out of the room. The music still blared out of the sound system in the living room.

Sirius pulled angry hands through his raven hair, glaring out the window and at the grey clouds forming outside, and finally deciding to go after her. Whipping around and forgetting all about his pancakes, and happy morning. He found her pacing the hall way, her wild hair in clumped knots, her cheeks wet with tears, and her complexion red with anger.

She paced a couple more times, and when she saw him coming she turned her back on him. Frustration filled him to the core, he hated seeing her like this, he hated feeling the way he did about everything, he hated feeling responsible, and before he could help himself, he had reached out and grabbed her shoulder, turning her around forcefully.

She stared into his eyes, anger flashing behind them, and he stared back, holding both her arms. She didn't struggle, she just stared, a tear fell unconsciously down her cheek, and suddenly his lips connected with hers.

At first he was surprised with himself, and then he noticed that she was kissing back fiercely. Her soft lips caressing his with an almost animal ferociousness, and he kissed back, all the weight on his shoulders seemed to disappear and he ran a hand down her back, his fingers twining in her soft hair. She had her hands running up and down his arms and chest. The moment seemed to last forever and his mind seemed to ease off of the tension it had been holding back.

Her leg entwined around his and suddenly he really realized what was happening and pulled back. He found himself staring into Hermione's surprised eyes, her mouth hung open for a moment and then she brought her hand up to it. Both of them were breathing hard, their chests going in and out.

"I- I have to go…" Sirius stated quickly, he ran a hand through his hair before summoning his shirt from the kitchen, slipping it on, and quickly striding out the door. Leaving Hermione there with the music blaring through the quiet house, to try and sort out her thoughts.

Ohh... Now what's going to happen? -confused author doesn't even know yet- I'll probably update sooner this time, not my best chapter, but hey, it's progress!