Chapter 11

The morning sun streamed in ribbons across the bed Hermione shared with Sirius. She awoke slowly, not to the brutal alarm clock, nor to the noises of the city. Instead, she woke up naturally, with no apparent catalyst.

She blinked rapidly to force her eyes to focus and looked over at Sirius. Objectively, he was a truly handsome man, one who had lived a rough life, maybe, but who still had a lot of life left. He had crinkles around his eyes, and Hermione wondered at the fact that a man with so much so be sad about could have laugh lines. His lips were slightly parted and looked a little dry. His hair was spread over the pillow case, and some had fallen onto his face, over his eye. Hermione brushed it back, careful not to actually touch his face, just his hair.

She thought back to their talk the night before. He'd been extremely... amenable to the news that they would have to be intimate in order to fulfil the needs of the bond. It was strange, thinking of the bond as a sentient entity, but she'd come to believe it truly was. She couldn't deny that it shifted the responsibility from her, for which she was truly grateful. She admitted her hand in what happened, but it felt nice to be able to say, 'the bond is making me want to wake Sirius up with a nice, wet kiss,' rather than admit to herself it was her own desire.

But she had to wonder what it would feel like to have a man want her for her, not because he might perish otherwise.

Since she would never know, she could at least enjoy Sirius' attentions for the time being. Once they found a cure or a solution, she could think about her real life. Until then, she would be stuck playing house with a man who probably wanted anyone but her.

Hermione slipped from the bed, intent on performing her morning ablutions before Sirius woke up. Today was Sunday, and Harry and Ginny would be coming over for dinner. Sirius wanted to tell them today, and she didn't disagree. She didn't want to be the one to tell Harry, though; but she would if she had to. It would be easier for her to be the bad guy than Sirius; she was more used to it and could handle it better. Sirius was too much of a friend to Harry and not enough of a father figure. He would absolutely detest having Harry be mad at him. And so would she, but she knew they'd be forgiven. She was not prone to the same dramatic outbursts as Sirius was, and even he admitted as much.

Hermione, towelled and, still dripping from the shower, wrote out a quick list of food she'd need for their dinner. She planned on making a simple chicken in white wine sauce, with caramelized asparagus and roasted potatoes. She might not be the greatest cook, but even she could handle chicken.

When she heard the shower running, she returned to the bedroom to get dressed. She tugged on simple white underpants and a lace-trimmed white bra. She had just opened the wardrobe when she heard the bathroom door open. She quickly went to grab something with which to cover herself, but before she could manage, she felt strong arms circle her waist and she was lifted off her feet.

Sirius laughed as he unceremoniously threw her on her back upon the bed, clamouring over her and pinning her down. Hermione half-heartedly struggled, sensing he actually wanted her to, until his lips met her neck, and he tongued her still-damp flesh.

"You thought you could escape me, huh, baby?" His voice was rough and playful, and he nipped her shoulder with his teeth. Hermione meant to squeal, but whimpered instead.

"No! I was only..." She meant to tell him she'd been preparing for dinner later, but he didn't really want an answer and let her know as much by firmly kissing her lips. She dutifully denied him entrance, not appreciating being silenced in such a manner, but he was persistent. He playfully licked her closed lips, giving a frustrated grunt when she pursed them. He kissed all around her mouth, running his tongue along the seam of her lips and finally biting her bottom lip not quite gently. Hermione gasped at the sting, and Sirius dove in.

His tongue roved her open mouth, and she could no longer think to deny him. Their tongues caressed each other, Hermione almost immediately ceding control to Sirius, who relished it. They both became aware that Sirius was entirely naked, pressed firmly against a nearly-naked Hermione, and Sirius couldn't stop himself from grinding his erection against her thigh. He groaned at the friction and tried not to think that he was acting entirely too much like Padfoot right now, rutting against her leg like an animal.

Hermione bent her leg at the knee, and Sirius' groin connected with hers instead of her thigh. She gasped against his lips and he grinned. He could feel the dampness of her panties against his bare cock and resented the only barrier between himself and certain heaven.

Sirius shifted his weight to the side so he could snake his hand down into her panties. Hermione was holding onto him with both hands, and her nails imbedded themselves into his flesh when his fingers grazed her swollen lower lips. They both moaned at the contact; Sirius was amazed at how wet she was, ignoring the fact that it might be because of her shower. His middle finger slipped into her folds, seeking out her hidden pearl. Upon his discovery of it, Hermione quietly keened, pressing her hips up against his hand, desperate for more contact.

Sirius would have loved nothing more than to mount her and thrust his hardness into her, giving neither of them a moment's respite before pounding them to an ecstatic release. But something held him back, and he maintained his position beside her, kissing her languidly as he gently fingered her clit.

Hermione broke the kiss when his fingers gently pinched her swollen nub, and her head fell onto the bed, her mouth open but no noise emitting. Sirius kissed and sucked on her neck, his fingers moving faster and faster as he felt her hips move more insistently. Without even slipping a finger into her, Sirius brought Hermione to the most intense orgasm of her young life. She cried out, clenching her fingers unforgivingly around his biceps, shutting her eyes tight against the waves that flooded her body. Her hips circled of their own accord, and Sirius was entranced by the movement, wishing he hadn't listened to that little voice and had buried himself within her like he'd wanted to.

When the surges ceased and Hermione came back to herself, she could only smile weakly. She suspected she was supposed to return the favour, but just as she was gathering the nerve to touch him, Sirius pushed himself off the bed and, winking at her lasciviously, headed back into the bathroom to finish his shower.

Hermione lay on the bed for a few blissful moments. The bond was giving her absolutely no stress, and she couldn't even feel it when she mentally reached out for it. It was satisfied. For now.

Sirius had sensed Hermione's hesitation in touching him. Her hands had not strayed lower than his waist the entire time. Rather than make her feel uncomfortable or obligated to reciprocate...which she absolutely was not...he escaped to the shower to give himself some much needed release. Using his new memory of Hermione writhing on the bed beneath him, Sirius brought himself off in record time, grunting as thick ropes coated the tile wall. He rinsed the wall off obligingly and thought about the next time he'd get to touch Hermione.

After going to the grocery store for Hermione, Sirius was permitted to do nothing else to help for dinner. Grimmauld Place was very tidy, the table was set, and dinner was nearly finished. Sirius staved off boredom by randomly mauling Hermione while she cooked, perversely enjoying her protests more than her acceptance.

By the time he'd ripped her nylons and popped the buttons off his own shirt in a fit of passion, Hermione was forced to banish him to the sitting room. Abandoning nylons altogether, Hermione snickered to herself. Sirius had a way of making her forget the bond. It was almost like he was touching her and maintaining his closeness to her so she could forget, never giving the bond a chance to make its needs known.

She appreciated the effort, and it almost worked. But Hermione's mind, even with warm, rough hands trailing all over her body, never shut off entirely, and it was always crying out, 'He doesn't really want this, not from you!' And she wasn't in the habit of ignoring her mind, so she never truly forgot.

Harry had Firecalled in the morning to confirm their invitation, and Sirius had responded that the dinner was still on. And right on time, Harry announced to Sirius, who was sitting in front of the hearth wondering what else he could do to torment his semi-unwilling lover, that he and Ginny were coming through.

They both somewhat gracefully entered the sitting room, and Harry immediately ran to Sirius, hugging him tightly. He was still having a hard time believing his godfather was really back, and it satisfied him to feel Sirius solidly in his arms. Sirius returned the embrace, hearing a gentle sniffling in the background. He released Harry and looked at Ginny. She had tears on her cheeks and her smile was bright but shaky. She took a hesitant step toward Sirius, and he strode to meet her, picking her up off her feet and swinging her around.

"Sirius! Put me down!" she laughed through her tears. Harry had told her he'd returned, but seeing him in the flesh was different. Hermione came in from the kitchen to see Sirius thrust Ginny in Harry's willing arms. She smiled from the doorway, and Sirius saw an opportunity.

He crossed the floor to Hermione and pulled her into the room by her hand. Hermione smiled her greeting at her friends, and they responded. Harry's eyes rested on Sirius' hand which was still holding Hermione's, and he looked questioningly at his godfather.

"Harry, listen." Sirius began, stopping as he heard Hermione squeak beside him. He ignored her and continued on. "There's no point in delaying this. When Hermione cast the spell to bring me back, it traded part of her soul for part of mine, and now our souls want to be together, and in order for that to happen, we have to be together. We have to have sex, basically. Otherwise, we could both become very ill and possibly even die. But I will take good care of her, don't worry about that."

Hermione's mouth gaped open and she looked ready to faint. Sirius had just summarized in less than a minute what it had taken her a day to prepare mentally. All her gentle wording, all her planning of telling Harry after dinner... gone, because Sirius couldn't keep his trap shut. She slapped his arm, but he only grinned at her.

Harry and Ginny both looked astonished. Ginny's face was slowly forming into a knowing grin, but Harry just looked uncomprehending.

"You have to... have sex? What kind of crazy magic is that? This stuff doesn't just happen! There's no reasonable explanation for a spell that forces people to randomly need sex!"

Sirius laughed and looped an arm around Hermione's waist, pulling her shock-stiffened form tightly against his side. "Well, Harry, apparently such things do occur, since we're smack-dab in the middle of it right now. You're a grown man, you can handle it. It's not ideal, I suppose, but at least you didn't bring me back... or Snape!" Sirius barked out a laugh but then seemed to absorb the horror of what he'd just said. His eyes grew wide, and he shook his head rapidly to rid himself of that mental image.

Harry only nodded blankly. He looked to Hermione, seemingly for confirmation. "It's true, Harry. But it's okay, we just have to figure out a way to fix it. As long as Sirius is back, it will always be worth it."

Sirius leaned down quickly and brushed her lips with his, pleased that she still thought it was worth it. Harry gasped softly and Ginny's grin grew wider.

Clearly, this would take some getting used to.

Sirius apparently believed the best way to acclimatize Harry to the news was to constantly confront him with it. He repeatedly kissed Hermione, touched her gently, held her hand, and even smacked her butt once, not daring to again after the indignant slap she'd delivered to the back of his head. All this served only to further fluster and perplex Harry. Ginny made inappropriate comments about their sex life throughout dinner, which only went slightly cold while they waited for Harry to recover.

However, by the end of the night, Sirius' approach seemed to be working. Hermione had to admit she was glad Sirius had been blunt and told Harry at the beginning of the night, since if she'd had her way and waited until later, they'd be sending Harry home in a near-coma as he adapted.

But let it never be said that Harry Potter could not rally. Soon enough, he was laughing with the couple, even sharing a joke with Ginny over the unlikelihood of the pairing.

Ginny took Hermione aside as the evening drew to a close.

"'Mione, what are you going to tell Ron?" Ginny seemed a little concerned. She knew her brother was not right for Hermione and vice versa, but they had been practically an institution, and Ron still occasionally pined over her.

"The truth, I suppose. Though I suspect you or Harry will tell him before I do. We don't talk much anymore, you know that."

Ginny nodded and assured Hermione she would pass on the news, perhaps later in the week after Harry was a little more understanding. No sense in getting them both worked into a state.

As Hermione went to turn back to the dining room where Sirius and Harry were having a low talk, Ginny held her back.

"Are you... are you okay? I mean, I know you and Ron never... had sex. Have you ever...?" Ginny looked a little nervous asking, and Hermione suspected she already knew the answer, but she responded anyway.

"I'm a virgin, Ginny. That's the main reason this spell was so... effective, I suppose you could say. And I'm going to have to lose my virginity to Sirius. I've accepted it. It could be worse; at least I know he won't be a bumbling, uncertain... you know. He'll be good, I bet." Hermione blushed at her musings, and Ginny wholeheartedly agreed with her sentiments.

"I'll bet he's bloody amazing! You'd better tell me everything."

Hermione shook her head, telling Ginny that it was private, but they both knew the details would come out eventually. It was too good not to share. They exchanged smirks and returned to the men.

Harry looked much less shell-shocked, and Hermione knew Sirius had explained the finer points to him. It was a complicated situation, but Harry's acceptance made it infinitely easier.

Hermione and Sirius walked Ginny and Harry to the Floo, hugging them both goodbye. When Harry took Hermione in his arms, he whispered, "I know he won't hurt you, Hermione, but if you ever want to talk... I understand his moods pretty well. You can talk to me." Hermione nodded gratefully. She didn't realize Harry told Sirius the exact same thing when he hugged him next.

It had been a trying day, and the pair wanted nothing more than to fall into bed. They retired sluggishly, barely undressing before they collapsed on the bed. Sirius gathered Hermione in his arms, trying to let her know he only wanted to hold her, not harass her as he'd done all night, and she let him wrap his arms firmly around her. The bond hadn't bothered either of them all day, even when Sirius had gone to the grocery store. It seemed that even Sirius touching Hermione sexually was enough to appease the bond.

Thinking, as always, of the implications, Hermione fell fast asleep in the arms of the only man who'd ever brought her comfort.