A/N: As always, quotes are in bold. I worked in two more House quotes in pretty rapid succession.
Sirius woke up the next morning and found the common room empty. The door to the other bedroom was ajar, and he peeked in. Hermione was draped across the bed, still fast asleep. Part of him wanted to wake her up, ask her if she'd join him for breakfast, but he decided against it. As much as he wanted the company, he knew Hermione needed her sleep. She, Ron, and Harry had all been sleeping more recently, but it was probably because they didn't get much of it over the past few months.
He wandered out of the room and sat out on the veranda with a book. He sat on a lounger and opened it to the first page, but couldn't bring himself to reading it. He gazed out at the ocean, heard the traffic below, smelled the salt in the air. The sound of someone laughing carried up from far below, and he realized how foreign the sound was. The war was over. Why couldn't everyone be happy?
"Sirius?" Hermione's voice carried from the doorway.
"Yes, love?" he said, putting the book down and turning to face her. She was still wearing her pajama pants and a white tank top that, if the sun had been hitting it a little differently, would be see-through. His eyes wandered down her body. She was thinner than he remembered, probably from not eating very well on her hunt, but she was by no means unhealthy looking. Her body had become more curvy, her breasts had grown, her face was longer, her eyes had sunken, she looked different than before he went through the Veil. She was just sixteen then, but she could easily pass for twenty three now. But she was not unattractive. Quite the opposite. No, he couldn't have those thoughts, and with some effort he pushed them out of his head.
"I'm a little hungry. Did you want to get something to eat?"
"That sounds wonderful. Want to order some breakfast?"
She looked at her watch. "More like lunch."
Sirius checked his watch and realized it was early afternoon. "Okay, lunch then. Get ready, we'll go find somewhere to eat."
"Let's just order something in," Hermione countered, spinning a lock of her hair between her fingers. "I don't want to go through all the fuss of getting ready."
"Deal," he smiled at her. They chose a couple items off the room service menu, and sat on the loungers on the veranda waiting for their meal.
"What's the plan for today?" Sirius asked, watching the waves in the distance.
"I was thinking of hitting the salon," Hermione replied, twisting her hair again. "I've let my hair get long and scraggly. It's driving me nuts."
"Why didn't you use a simple severing charm on it?"
"I don't trust myself to do it properly, and I really didn't trust Harry or Ron with my hair. Would you?"
"Not on your life. A day of pampering it is. Just charge it to the room."
"No way, Sirius. I'm getting this one myself."
Sirius didn't reply, just moved his eyes to his book.
Hermione raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. She opened her own book and busied herself reading. He dared to look out of the corner of his eye at her, and couldn't help but stare at the beautiful young witch beside him. It was fascinating how she could lose herself in her reading, like nothing else was going on in the world. Was this how she escaped the fear that must have been surrounding her those months with Harry?
When there was a knock on the room door he excused himself. He told her to wait on the porch, that he would bring her salad out to her. He didn't want her to hear him make the phone call.
"You must be Miss Granger," the middle-aged stylist greeted her the moment she entered the salon.
She nodded, fuming inside. She knew what had happened. Sirius must have called down to tell them to expect her, and to charge her cut to the room.
"Come this way," she beckoned. They walked past the stylist chairs and through a door.
"Where are we going?" Hermione asked, confused.
"For your massage, of course," the woman replied.
"Massage?" she exclaimed. She would kill Sirius. Back through the Veil with him.
"Yes, Mr. Black was insistent that you get the whole relaxation package from start to finish. Massage, mud bath, manicure, pedicure, aromatherapy, facial massage, makeover, and, of course, hair cut and style," the woman rattled off as she opened the door to a dim room. "There's a robe in here, you can change into after the massage. For now we'll need you to lie down, Jessica will be here in a minute for you."
Once the woman left Hermione turned red as she stripped down as quickly as she could and pulled a large towel around herself. A minute later a pretty young woman came in and flashed a dazzling smile at her. "Hermione?" she verified.
Hermione could only nod in response.
"First time, eh?" Jessica smiled at her, turning on some music. "Just tell me if anything is making your uncomfortable or hurting, OK?"
Another nod.
"Just lie down there, and we'll get started."
Hermione obliged.
"Is this your first time to Australia?" Jessica asked, trying to make conversation.
"Yes," Hermione replied. Somehow the conversation made her feel more at ease.
"What brings you down here?"
"Family," she replied, saying the first thing that came to mind.
"Are you enjoying it so far?"
Hermione nodded, not knowing if Jessica could see it or not through her mane of hair. She exhaled heavily as she felt the expert hands pass over her shoulders, releasing some of the tension, and thought that maybe she wouldn't kill Sirius after all.
He was still out on the veranda when she returned from the salon. She bounced in, clearly more relaxed than she had been in weeks.
"Wow," he muttered, unable to stop staring at her. Her wild hair was now tamed without use of Sleekeazy, and it fell in soft ringlets around her face. The hint of makeup that had been applied to her face made her glow, or maybe that was the smile.
She blushed as she watched him stare at her, then decided it was okay to move forward and give him a quick hug. "Thank you, Sirius," she whispered. "I can't believe you managed to set that up over the phone."
"You know me. I'm too handsome to do paperwork."
She shook her head, and spoke without thinking. "That smugness of yours really is an attractive quality." Her mouth opened in horror as she realized what words had just spilled from it.
Sirius didn't miss a beat. "Thank you," he replied. "It was either that or get my hair highlighted. Smugness is easier to maintain."
She laughed, thankful he didn't call her out for her comment.
"You look stunning," he replied, closing his book.
"I feel amazing," she beamed. It wasn't a lie, she felt better than she had in years.
"I'm taking you out," he said. It was a statement, not a request.
"Oh, you probably had plans. You don't have to..."
"Stop, 'Mione. Today is all about making you feel relaxed. We'll go find some quiet little cafe for dinner, then maybe out to a bar. Gaze at the Muggles, talk to them, whatever, it's not a date. I just don't think you should spend your whole vacation sitting in this hotel room, and I'm kind of itching to go out and see what Brisbane has to offer."
She nodded, feeling excited and nervous. She didn't want to look at the Muggle boys, and spending the whole night by Sirius was something she had wanted to do, though she was sure he didn't feel the same way. Even going out as friends was more than she could have hoped for. No, not those feelings again. Maybe she should do some Muggle-watching to get her mind off her best friend's Godfather.
She hurried to her room and pulled on a black denim skirt and a light blue peasant blouse. It was the nicest thing she had in her beaded bag, and it upset her that she didn't have better clothes. The next day she would have to sneak off and do some shopping without Sirius. She added a simple silver necklace, and some earrings to match. She then sat on the bed to wait a few minutes, both to calm her nerves and to not make it seem like she was too nervous to go out with him.
In the room across the suite Sirius took time to throw on a tight-fitting pair of black jeans, a black button-up shirt, and his motorcycle jacket over it. He stood in the mirror and shook his head. "It's not a date," he repeated to himself as he pictured running a hand through those soft curls. No, this was Hermione. He risked losing his friendship with her and Harry if he tried something with her. He'd have to have fun tonight, then let her run off to her own room without a dirty thought passing through his mind. He promised it to himself.
"You look wonderful," he murmured as she appeared from her room, and he tossed a helmet towards her. She caught it, blushing. She kept her distance down the hall and in the elevator, but he pulled her to him as they walked across the lobby.
"The clerk had his eye on you," he explained as Hermione looked up at him as they exited the front door.
"Jealous?" she asked before she could stop herself. She could have sworn he blushed.
The valet pulled the bike around, then jumped off the thing like it was burning him. He handed Sirius the keys, then scurried behind the valet station where he declined to sit on his stool.
It took Hermione a moment to realize what the strange behavior was about, and snickering she climbed onto the bike behind Sirius.
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