CHAPTER 7

The Great Hall was buzzing with excitement as the students prepared to go to Hogsmeade. Hermione gazed around, looking at the familiar pumpkins and decorations lining the walls in preparation for the feast that night. She saw Hagrid hoisting a pumpkin over one shoulder and depositing it near the Head Table. Amanda and Lily were chatting animatedly about Honeyduke's, telling Hermione all about the famous sweet shop. Hermione nodded politely, feigning ignorance. She noticed that Amanda was sitting next to Remus, letting her hand venture closer to his as she spoke. He was pointedly moving it farther away, his face looking a bit nervous. Hermione ate her breakfast quickly, watching everyone else do the same.

"Come on," Sirius said, taking her arm as the sound of dozens of benches scraping backward on the floor filled the air. "Time to go see Hogsmeade."

The throng of students pushed forward. She listened to Sirius, James, and Amanda talk animatedly about the Quidditch match, but when they got to the village, the group split apart. Amanda waved goodbye and walked off to join a couple of other girls from their year. James wrapped an arm around Lily and headed into Honeyduke's Sweet Shop with Remus and Peter. Sirius, however, pulled Hermione away from the rest and toward the Three Broomsticks.

"This is my favorite spot," he said, pulling her inside with a devious grin on his face.

"Mister Black," Madame Rosmerta said, greeting him with a raised eyebrow.

"Hello, Rosmerta," he replied with his signature smile, which made Hermione feel awfully jealous.

He pulled out a stool for her at the bar and Hermione hopped down next to him.

"Two Firewhiskies, please," he announced proudly.

"Sure," Rosmerta said, rolling her eyes and setting two Butterbeers in front of them.

Sirius clinked his bottle against hers and took a long drink, and Hermione took a sip. She had missed the familiar flavor of Butterbeer. After they finished their drinks, he threw a few coins at Madame Rosmerta and took Hermione outside into the brisk, cool air. They walked around, him showing her some of the more popular places in the village, and then stopped when they reached a wooden bench underneath a tree whose golden leaves were just beginning to fall to the ground.

"What do you think?" he asked.

"About what?"

"Hogsmeade, of course!" Sirius said with a grin.

"Oh! It's lovely," she replied.

"So are you," he said, looking into her eyes.

It was all she could do not to melt right then. She couldn't stop staring into his eyes, those beautiful grey eyes. She saw him slowly leaning closer and closer to her. Her mind screamed at her to stop, that this was Harry's godfather and not just some boy she'd met, that she was creating a dangerous schism in the timeline, but her body wasn't listening. She closed her eyes and felt him reach a hand up to cup her face. She trembled slightly with nerves and excitement, and then his lips found hers. His fingers tangled themselves in her hair and his breath quickened as he kissed her, and then all too soon, he pulled away, still staring into her eyes. She couldn't speak. She just looked at him, this handsome young man with a barking laugh and sparkling eyes. Her heart knifed painfully as she remembered that he was destined to meet such a terrible end. But then, he smiled at her, that gorgeous, bright smile that made her forget it all: forget where she was, who he was, who she was. He kissed her lightly on the nose.

"Come on, let's go catch up with the others," he said, standing and taking her hand.

Hermione, hardly able to comprehend words after their kiss, took his hand and followed behind him. He kept sneaking kisses as they wandered around, checking in the bustling shops and cafes looking for their friends. She could hardly keep herself from grinning broadly, her face buried in his shoulder, but her reverie was interrupted when she felt Sirius stiffen beside her.

"Hello, Sirius," said a sneering voice.

She glanced up and saw a boy who could have been Sirius's twin. Same grey eyes, same straight nose and aristocratic features, same jet-black hair, though cut short. Regulus Black. He was a couple of inches shorter than Sirius, and he had a crease between his eyebrows, probably from all the sneering. He was standing with a tall boy that Hermione immediately recognized.

"Regulus," spat Sirius. "Avery."

Regulus and Avery were both glaring at them.

"Who's this?" asked Regulus, his nose wrinkled like he'd smelled something foul. "The new Gryffindor everyone's talking about?"

Hermione was nervous, but Sirius stepped in front of her protectively.

"She looks like a Mudblood," said Regulus.

Sirius launched at him. His wand was in his right hand while his left grasped at Regulus's throat. Avery had pulled out his own wand and had it drawn on Sirius.

"Sirius!" cried Hermione.

She spotted Avery casting a hex and drew her own wand in an instant.

"Protego!" she called, blocking the spell.

Sirius roared at Avery, shoving Regulus down to the ground and spinning to Avery, fist drawn back to punch him. Hermione shrieked.

"Hey, hey!" yelled a familiar voice, and suddenly, Remus Lupin was in the fray. He grabbed Sirius's arm and pulled him back. Avery and Sirius were staring daggers at one another and breathing heavily. Remus was muttering in Sirius's ear, and Sirius shook himself out of Remus's grasp, straightened his robes, and backed away. Avery bent to help Regulus get up off the ground.

Remus and Sirius turned back to her.

"All right?" asked Sirius, and she nodded.

Sirius smiled at her.

"Quite a protection charm you've got there," he said, threading his hand in hers and turning to Remus. "Where are James and Lily and Peter?"

"Three Broomsticks," said Remus.

Together, the three of them found the rest of the group enjoying their own round of Butterbeers.

"Where have you lot been?" asked James.

"Fighting," said Remus.

James stood from his seat in an instant, his face alive with indignation and ready to defend his friends. He reminded Hermione so much of Harry.

"It's fine, it's over," said Sirius.

"Who?" said James.

"Avery and my brother," he said darkly.

Lily grasped James's hand and tugged him back down into his seat, and Sirius, Hermione, and Remus all sat down with them. Sirius wrapped an arm behind her shoulders and placed a gentle kiss against her temple. She turned to face him, suddenly feeling as though they were alone despite the bustling tavern around her. He grasped her chin with his fingers and pulled her in for a kiss.

"Now you've met my brother," he said, with a low chuckle.

"Charming," said Hermione with a giggle, and he kissed her again.

After their day at Hogsmeade, it wasn't very fun to march back to the castle, where they had endless homework waiting for them. The boys and girls separated so they could drop off their things in their dormitories, and when Hermione and Lily got upstairs, Lily couldn't wait to start in on her.

"You and Sirius!" Lily shrieked.

The rest of their roommates seemed to perk up at her proclamation.

"You're joking!" said Amanda with a laugh.

Hermione just smiled, feeling her cheeks redden.

"I mean, I had a feeling that something might end up happening between you two, but now that it's real!" Lily exclaimed. "Oh, it's so wonderful to see him happy. He deserves it!"

"I know," Hermione said, agreeing more wholeheartedly than Lily would ever know.

"So what happened?" asked Amanda.

"He kissed me," Hermione said, a grin spreading across her face, and the girls all giggled and began peppering her with questions.

Hermione collapsed onto her bed, unable to help the girlish grin on her face as she relived the kiss.

(())

"Sirius, you old dog!" James shouted as the boys piled into their dormitory.

"I just kissed her!" Sirius said, throwing his hands in the air. "That was it! I've kissed dozens of girls before, and you lot never gave me this kind of trouble for it!"

"You'll be a domesticated dog any day now," laughed Peter.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Sirius.

"Oh, come on, mate," said James. "We can tell you like her."

Sirius shrugged but smiled despite himself.

"I mean, if it weren't for her, I'd have been on the wrong end of Avery's hex today," he said.

They spent some time discussing Avery and his brother. It reminded them that soon, it wouldn't be just hexes from the Slytherins they had to worry about. There was a war brewing outside the castle walls, and it wouldn't be long before they were all thrown into it. It seemed Regulus was destined to join the ranks of Voldemort, and for all Sirius didn't like his little brother, he was still family, and Sirius wished he'd find a different path. Sirius sighed. The four boys all headed back down into the Common Room. Soon, Sirius saw the seventh-year girls coming downstairs, all whispering, and when they locked eyes with him, they burst into giggles. He had a feeling that he wasn't the only one to be barraged with questions and teasing upon their return. Hermione walked up to him and looked shyly down at the ground. He took her hand in his, and they walked to the Great Hall together.

The feast was enormous; there was more food than they could possibly eat. Jack o' Lanterns in the center of the tables laughed and told jokes, and the ghosts were having quite a time playing their part in the Halloween festivities. Sirius held Hermione's hand on his right, and then felt James elbow him on his left.

"What?" he whispered.

"Have some," James replied, holding a small bottle of Firewhiskey that he had apparently smuggled out of Hogsmeade.

Sirius glanced around before bringing his goblet of pumpkin juice under the table so James could spike it with Firewhiskey. He elbowed Hermione and showed her the bottle, and her eyes went wide.

"Do you want some?" he whispered, trying not to laugh at her reaction.

"I . . . I'm not sure," she said nervously.

Sirius just shook his head and took her goblet under the table as well. Soon, all four of the Marauders, as well as Lily, Hermione, and Amanda, were enjoying spiked drinks. Sirius began to feel the now familiar tingle that came with Firewhiskey, and Hermione looked as though she might have been a bit drunk already. They polished off half the bottle with dinner, and James snuck the rest up to the dormitory.

"Have a shot, Moony," James slurred, and Sirius glanced over at Hermione to see if she'd noticed the slip. The four of them tried to avoid using their nicknames around other people.

"Surely, Prongs," Remus replied, holding out a cup but unable to keep it steady as James poured.

Sirius sighed and shrugged. Obviously, his friends were in no shape to pay attention to who was listening to their nicknames and who wasn't. Soon, Peter was nearly passed out on the floor from too much Firewhiskey, Remus and Amanda were looking just a bit cozier than usual, and Lily and James were snogging in the corner. Sirius looked down at Hermione and pulled her closer. He loved how her cheeks were a bit rosy from the whiskey, and that her brown eyes were shining with her smile. He leaned in and gave her a kiss, tasting the remnants of whiskey on her tongue. She had her hands in his hair, and when she let out a little whimper against him, his entire body jolted. His hands were skimming her hips and thighs. If they'd had a bit of privacy, he'd be venturing his hands further. As it was, his trousers were feeling a bit tight in the crotch, but he ignored it and focused on kissing her. He pulled away, gazing into her brown eyes, which were cloudy with lust and drunkenness. He grinned madly.

The night wore on, and James and Lily ambled back over to their couch. Sirius, James, and Amanda struck up an animated conversation about Quidditch. Soon, Sirius looked down at Hermione to see that she was slumped against him, lips slightly parted, completely passed out. He smiled indulgently. Soon, Lily and Amanda had gone to bed and the rest of the Marauders were standing to head up to their dormitories as well, but Sirius couldn't manage to wake Hermione.

"Girl can't hold her liquor," joked Remus.

"Well, I can't very well take her up to her bed," Sirius said, remembering one ill-fated attempt of James's to go up to the girls' dormitories.

"Just stay there, mate," James said as he wobbled to his feet.

Sirius shrugged and didn't disagree. He wanted nothing more than to spend the night on the couch with Hermione. He watched his three friends stumble up the stairs, Remus hitting the walls on either side like a pinball machine, and once they were safely out of sight, he adjusted himself so that he was sleeping behind her, his arms wrapped around her side protectively.

(())

Hermione awoke with a splitting headache and a very dry mouth. She noticed immediately that the room was far too bright. The second thing she noticed was that she was decidedly not in her bed, and that there was a strong, heavy arm resting on her waist. She rolled over a bit and saw Sirius Black, still sleeping, nuzzled against her on the couch. Did I really sleep on the couch with him? she thought.

"Sirius?" she whispered, nudging him slightly.

"Yes, love?" he mumbled, stirring in his sleep.

"Did we fall asleep on the couch?" she whispered again.

"Yea," he continued, pulling her closer to him. "You fell asleep and I couldn't bear to wake you, so I just stayed here."

"Oh," replied Hermione, and she settled back onto the couch with him.

She was actually very comfortable, and she smiled happily and snuggled against him. It was a very new feeling, waking up next to a man. Her next thought made her wince, however, as she remembered once again that this man was indeed Harry's godfather. She pushed that thought out of her mind and let herself rest for a moment, conjuring an enormous glass of water in front of her and downing it in one gulp.

A thunder of footsteps from the girls' dormitory meant the First years were getting out of bed to go to breakfast. Hermione peeked an eye open and saw five young girls staring at her with open mouths. In her own time, Hermione would never be caught dead in such a compromising position, but being with Sirius and the Marauders, as well as having a monstrous hangover, was giving her a distinctly different perception.

"Go on, go to breakfast," she muttered darkly at them, and the girls disappeared.

Sirius stretched widely and blinked his eyes, and Hermione slowly sat up. After a few minutes, Remus, Peter, and James all descended their staircase, looking equally as haggard and exhausted as Hermione felt.

"We need food," James mumbled. "Come on."

They all ate loads of breakfast; Hermione was famished. Her friends' eyes had dark circles underneath, and Hermione was certain that her own eyes looked very similar. Lily came to their rescue with a hangover potion that she'd brewed in the dormitory. A few drops in their morning's pumpkin juice, and everyone was bright and alert again. She spent the rest of the day working on her Arithmancy homework with Sirius and reluctantly correcting James's Transfiguration essay.

"I'm not doing this again!" she insisted as he handed his essay to her.

"You say that every Sunday," James replied, leaning his head back into Lily's lap.

It was so easy for her to just fall into the routine; being friends with James and Lily and Sirius and even Peter seemed almost normal to her now. She even forgot from time to time that Harry was not just some long-lost friend but was actually the child of the friends she had now. She had found her place among the Marauders, and she was being to sincerely fall for Sirius Black, who had just scooted onto the chair where she was correcting James's essay, murmuring in her ear.

Sirius gave her a lingering kiss before she went up to bed, the sort of kiss that she felt all the way down in her toes. She lay in her bed, trying not to imagine what would happen when Dumbledore finally did discover a way to send her back to her own time. Oh, couldn't I just stay here? she wished, but she knew it wasn't possible. She would have to go back to her own time, a time where James and Lily weren't alive, and neither was Sirius.