An hour spent sobbing saw to it that Hermione fell asleep in the strong arms of the one man who

would change the world for her- but neither of them knew it yet. Sirius had carried Hermione to her

bed and tucked her in; watching her as she slept. Thinking about everything she had said, and knowing

that she really had not said all that much. Did he trust her? implicitly. Did he care for her? More than

he knew he could. Did he need to know what in Merlin's name she was hurting for?

Abso-fucking-lutely. Sirius was not stupid, he knew that James would know what it was that she was

hiding. He just didn't know how to get it out either of them. He didn't want to push her; she was so

fragile and he couldn't bear to break her.

"What do I do?" he asked himself

"About what, love?" she murmured in her sleep

Love... a simple four letter word. A simple four letter word that changes the world every single day. A

simple four letter word that could end wars and create life. A simple four letter word that made

Sirius's heart thump wildly.

Hermione awoke the next morning with only Sirius Black on her mind. She had no real recollection of

what happened before he entered her room, only that she needed to see him. Her need would be met

sooner than she thought for as she climbed out of bed, Hermione stepped on something rather firm

which grunted and pulled her down.

"Sirius Black! Unhand me this instant!" Hermione giggled, making no effort to pull herself away from

one devastatingly handsome Sirius Black.

"And if I don't?" he asked her, with a dangerous glint in his eye.

Hermione could control herself no longer, she leaned forward and kissed him softly. His lips were just

as she had imagined, soft yet firm-unbearably amazing. He moaned so softly into her mouth that she

was unsure whether or not she had actually heard it. Sirius couldn't believe this was happening, after

so long she was here in his arms, kissing him. Go Padfoot! He chanted in his head. He gripped her

and turned her over so that she was forced to lay back under his weight.

"Mm Sirius? What are we doing?"

"I'd say that was obviously love" Sirius replied not enjoying the absence of her lips from his own.

Hermione gazed at him through half-lidded eyes and he couldn't resist pulling her in for another kiss.

"We're doing what we've both wanted to do for quite a while. Remus isn't the one for you Mione. I

am." Sirius whispered to her. He had caught her off-guard. Those two words spoke volumes. Then

she had a thought.

"What about that tramp, Kelly or something, you were with?" Hermione asked him, with a scowl on

her face. Oh she knew the name Cathy, she knew it well, and he knew she knew.

"She means nothing to me, she was a one time—err two time shag. I'm sorry that she was my first but,

she means nothing." he replied honestly

"Sirius..."

"Minnie, look at me!"

Hermione glanced up at the man that had come to mean so much to her. She took a look into his eyes

and saw her world; she knew she had to save him. She leaned forward and caught his lips once more

and as she kissed him she couldn't help but long for her muggle ipod. She had enchanted it to work in

Hogwarts, and right now she wished that she could just say Accio Ipod!

Just as she thought this her room seemed to shake inwardly and something hard hit Sirius on the head.

"Bloody hell! What is that!?" he shouted

Hermione approached the object and started laughing hysterically; it was her Ipod, she had somehow

accio'd it from the future! Oh dear Merlin, this was certainly something.

"Sirius! That's my Ipod!!! That's my fucking ipod! Holy mother of Merlin!! Sirius!" Hermione shouted

with glee, jumping up and down and then vigorously attacking Sirius with a series of kisses.

"Minnie, as much as I'm enjoying this great show of affection, would please explain to me what, in the

name of Salazar Slytherin himself, is an Ipod and why it attacked me?"

"Oh Siri, stop being such a drama queen. It's a muggle music thing. It plays all my music at the press

of a button. I had enchanted it to play within the castle, and I was thinking of dancing with you and it

appeared!" She shouted in a mad rush, not realizing that this was her umpteenth outburst regarding the

future.

Sirius's eyes became slits, there was something funny going on with Hermione. He felt desperate. He

didn't know what to say to the girl who'd stolen his heart, because he felt as if he couldn't trust her. It

was a terrible sinking feeling; where you're drowning and floundering and someone's watching you

from a distance, making no move to help. He reached forward and pulled Hermione to him

"What the fuck is going on, Hermione?"

That was it. He never used her given name, always Mione or Minnie, never Hermione. She

understood his distress, and closed her eyes. She didn't know what to do, she had already told James,

what was the harm in telling her.. her what? Not now Herm-o-ninny she thought to herself.

"Sirius, sit down, I've got to speak to you about something." Hermione said to her almost-lover.

He looked up at her, his sapphire eyes taking her in, reflecting her own anxiousness.

"Wouldn't have anything to do with 'saving us all' would it?" Sirius asked scathingly

"Siri, I'm not who you think I am. I had this time turner and something happened and I had to turn it. It

was broken and I didn't realize. Instead of taking me back twenty hours, it took me back twenty

years-"

"Yes. James told us this already, but what's this got to do with your outbursts?"

"Let me finish. I know he has told you all of this. In my own time, I'm best friends with James's son,

we were lovers at one point as well." Hermione ignored his growl at this "He survived the killing curse

Sirius."

"That's impossible!"

"I know! He was just a child, barely over a year old. He had to witness his parents die. James died

protecting him and-" she could no longer control the tears "and so did you Sirius. Remus is the only

one left! You don't know what it's like watching all of you! Knowing what will become of the people I

love so much. It's heart breaking Siri, and it kills me everyday."

Sirius watched as she fell to her knees and cried silently to herself. He felt betrayed; he knew she hurt

for him but she hadn't tried to warn him. She hadn't told him a thing before now. He got up slowly and

had just reached for the door knob when he heard her call out to him.

"Don't breathe a word of this to anyone! Please Sirius!"

"I-I won't." With that he walked out of her room and wandered the monstrous halls of Hogwarts. He

wanted to lose himself, he didn't want to know those things. He realized, as he sat on an ever-moving

staircase, that this was a very large burden to bear.

"Shit. If I'm feeling this weighed down, she must be devastated." He rubbed his hand over his face as

if trying to wipe away the bad feelings. It didn't work. For once in his life, Sirius Black did not have a

smart alec response to life.