Chapter 14

For the first time since she'd started her job, Hermione slept through her alarm. It was nearly lunch time when she finally woke up. She had no intention of going in that day. Working so long had nearly killed her and Sirius the day before; she was pretty sure she deserved at least one day off.

Truthfully, she felt fine. Well rested and in good spirits. Sirius must have been even more tired than she, since he was still out cold beside her. She absentmindedly ran her fingers over his chest, but he frowned in his sleep and she stopped. She didn't want to leave the warmth of the bed just yet, so she settled in to watch him sleep.

After about half an hour, Hermione decided they'd slept enough. If Sirius ever wanted to get to sleep at a reasonable hour that night, he'd have to get up soon. Smiling a little evilly, Hermione set to tickling Sirius' ribs. He didn't jerk away like she'd hoped he would. Instead, he groaned and tried to escape her fingers. Frowning at her failure, she placed small kisses on his lips and face. His eyelids fluttered open, and he smiled at her.

He immediately winced and closed his eyes again.

Hermione was getting worried. Why wouldn't he look at her? Was he ashamed of what they'd done... or disappointed that she'd been there when he awoke?

"Sirius, is everything okay?" She prided herself for keeping a level tone.

But Sirius' tone was anything but level. "No, something is really wrong."

Hermione immediately forgot her self-esteem issues in favour of concern for the man in her bed. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," he moaned. "I feel sick... really fucking sick, actually. Everything hurts... something's wrong."

"What, specifically, Sirius?"

He took a deep breath, trying to combat the pain. "My head is pounding, my stomach's twisting... I feel weak, exhausted... my skin's on fire, and my blood feels like it has glass in it." He groaned. "Specific enough?"

Trying not to panic, Hermione ran through what would be causing this illness. As far as she knew, she was doing everything right; they'd certainly had enough contact during the night to combat any residual pain from the entire day apart. There was no reason why Sirius should feel ill. It could be a regular human sickness, of course. But his symptoms were so like those from when he needed her, only more extreme.

"I'm going to kiss you, okay? To see if that helps," Hermione informed Sirius, but he only nodded weakly.

She pressed her lips lightly to his, increasing the pressure when she got no response. She teased his lips with her tongue, and he opened his mouth obligingly, but she could tell it wasn't helping.

"I'm going to have to get help. I can't...I can't lose you! Not like this. There is an answer, we just have to find it. Stay here. I'll go see Professor Snape."

Sirius groaned at the mention of the hated name. "Why do you always run to him for answers? I thought you were the smart one."

Hermione frowned, but knew it was (mostly) the sickness talking. "Severus Snape is one of the smartest men I've ever met. If it weren't for him, you would not even be here for him to save again! He's the only one who can help us, I just know it. I won't be gone long."

Sirius only nodded and accepted her parting kiss with as much energy as he could spare, wanting to show her he was the only one. He felt irrationally jealous of Snape. Sirius knew that he himself was intelligent, but his brains just could not compare to Snape's, and he knew Hermione held smarts in the highest regard.

A few moments later he heard her call out, "Snape's dungeon office," into the Floo, and he felt a flash of pain behind his eyes before he lost consciousness.

Hermione had had the presence of mind to grab the invisible Dark text before she ran to Snape's. She had read everything it had to offer, but maybe Snape could find more answers somehow. She put a lot of stock in his abilities, and she counted on him to help her.

She tumbled out of the Floo and landed on her knees in his office. She cried out from the contact, but stood up quickly. Snape was not at his desk.

Glancing at the Grandfather clock in the corner, Hermione saw it was lunchtime at Hogwarts. He would be in the Great Hall.

Not thinking about her inappropriate attire of a camisole and pyjama bottoms, Hermione clutched the invisible book to her chest and ran to the Great Hall as fast as her legs would carry her. Never an athlete, she was panting by the time she arrived.

She flung the huge door open and bent over, trying to catch enough breath to yell to Snape.

Dragging as much air into her lungs as they could hold, Hermione screamed, "Professor Snape! I need your help right now!"

Panic had seized her on the run over, and she was nearly hysterical with it now. Sirius was dying Sirius was dying she'd killed him he was dead dead dead.

Every single head in the hall whipped toward the girl in her pyjamas, eyes wild with fear and hair in terrible disarray. Most recognized her, either from school or from the papers, but many of the younger ones looked lost and a little scared.

All the professors were looking at her as well. Snape had immediately leapt to his feet as soon as she'd said his name, and he was now billowing violently down the centre aisle, glaring at all and sundry. Minerva McGonagall was on her feet, looking concerned for her former pupil, but she calmed the students with her soft brogue and silenced the hall.

Hermione felt only relief as Snape approached her, grabbing her arm and leading her quickly from the hall. He did not let go as he fairly dragged her to his office.

"Miss Granger, what is the meaning of this? Do you always go around causing such distur..."

"Professor Snape, Sirius is dying!" The panic still had a hold on her. She'd felt it ever since she exited the Floo, and she couldn't escape the feeling of fear that was flooding her. Something is really wrong!

"What are you talking about? Haven't you... taken my advice?" He looked awkward, and this was the only thing that clued her in to what he meant.

"Well, we haven't had sex yet. We've done other stuff, just last night. So there's no reason for him to be sick!"

Still dragging her along, Snape queried, "What are his symptoms?"

"Headaches, stomach-ache, severe fatigue... something's wrong, sir! I just know it. I can feel it!"

"Please do calm yourself, your histrionics will solve nothing...you know this."

Hermione let his impossibly low voice sooth her frazzled nerves. Remain calm, find the answer. You are his only hope.

"I'm okay. I'm okay." She nodded, trying to believe it.

"Is there something wrong with your arm?" He looked at her questioningly. She was holding onto the invisible book, and it looked like she was holding her arm to her chest protectively.

"No, sir. It's the invisible book. The one with the potion and incantation to bring him back."

"Invisible? How odd." They finally arrived in his office, and Hermione fell gracelessly into the chair opposite Snape's desk. She dropped the book onto his desk with a thunk.

Snape ran his fingers over it, feeling for the edges and opening it to touch the pages, hidden though they were.

"How were you able to get it to reveal itself?"

"Have you a knife?" Hermione was not looking forward to cutting along the barely-healed wound on her chest yet again, but she wouldn't hesitate for a moment.

Looking at her sceptically, Snape passed her a shining silver blade he used for slicing potions ingredients. He always kept it razor sharp.

Without a moment's pause, Hermione pulled down the front of her camisole slightly, baring the scar over her heart, and ran the blade firmly across her sorely abused flesh. Snape shouted her name and leapt up to stop her, but she was already running her fingers through the wound and slicking them across the book.

Snape grabbed her wrist firmly in his hand and yanked her away from the book. "Merlin, Granger, what have you done? Have you any idea...?"

"Of course not! I think we've already established that I have no idea what I'm doing! Just help me! " Her words were nearly hysterical, and she tried to rein herself back in. She silently begged him to speak to her in that calming voice; she needed something to quell the fear threatening to drown her.

"Hermione, be quiet for a moment. What's done is done. Obviously, this was one of the worst things you could have possibly done, but there's no need to dwell on it since, evidently, it is not the first time you've used this method to read the book." He'd gestured to her scarred chest, and she shook her head.

"We'll talk about the repercussions later. Now, we must read and help your friend."

Hermione opened the book and found the page with the information on the Veil. She smeared more blood across the blank page, and words suddenly filtered into sight.

"'In which what we desire returns to us,'" Snape murmured.

"But there was nothing after this! The next chapter was about... earthbound spirits!"

Snape gingerly turned the page. It was blank. Hermione looked at her former professor desperately. He returned her gaze, letting it fall to the open cut on her chest. He raised his hand and trailed his fingers through the blood that was dripping to stain her shirt. Hermione shuddered at the touch, thankful that he didn't just shove his fingers into the wound like she had. Snape didn't meet her eyes, but placed his wet fingers on the page.

It was a new page.

Hermione groaned. "Why can't we ever have all the information the first time?"

"Because that is not how Dark texts work, of course. I told you at the very beginning there would be a dear cost. Now, we learn what it is."

Snape read out loud when Hermione's eyesight refused to focus. She tried to take steadying breaths, focussing on his melodic voice, but it wasn't working anymore. She needed to see Sirius.

Snape had finished and was looking at her expectantly. She groaned. "I'm sorry. Could you paraphrase for me?"

"It's nothing you don't already know. Until you offer a sacrifice, Sirius will suffer unbearable pain. He needs an anchor of blood to keep him in this world. Your offering was good but insufficient."

Hermione felt like screaming in frustration. "What does that mean? "

"Your virginity, stupid girl. Try to follow along. A sacrifice: because it's not how you wanted to lose it, I'm assuming; but also because you are offering a part of your body that is pure, untouched. It will anchor him to this side of the Veil, and the Veil itself will release its final hold on him. It will bind you together in a different way than before. The original bond was meant to bring you together. Because you have not consummated, the bond is giving you an ultimatum. For some reason unknown to us mere humans, the Veil wants you and Sirius Black together. You have to offer him your virginity...and soon...or he will surely die, and you very well might die from the withdrawal. It is most unfortunate, but easily remedied. Go home and copulate, and stop bothering me!"

Hermione couldn't find the strength to be shocked at Snape's outburst. She suspected she had been rather slow on the uptake regarding this whole mess, but he usually wasn't so abrupt with her.

"Professor Snape... thank you. Thank you so much for your help. It means the world to me, and I don't know what I would have done if..." she broke off. Sirius might have died without his help. More than once. She'd known they would have to have sex, but she didn't realize there was a time limit, and now that she knew the clock was ticking, there was only one thing she could do.

Snape seemed mollified by her words. "Miss Granger, you can always count on me. As much as it displeases me to see Sirius Black alive and relatively well, and even more so to see him forced upon you, I am glad that his presence is at least making some people happy." His words sounded more than a little forced, and Hermione knew it was both from saying the words aloud and because he probably didn't mean them.

Hermione impulsively hugged him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He didn't return the embrace in the slightest, leaving his arms stiffly at his sides. His rough frock abraded the wound on her chest, and she frowned. Pulling back, she noticed she had bled on him.

"I'm sorry." She gestured at the blood that barely showed on the severe black material.

"It's not a problem. I work on potions; I am continually stained." Hermione nodded. She made to move back to the Floo to return to Sirius and fulfil her part of the original bargain.

Snape stopped her, and she turned. He placed a potion into her hand, a clear viscous salve in a squat square bottle. She looked at him with a question in her eyes.

"It will help heal that rather unsightly wound on your chest."

Hermione nodded her thanks and returned again to the hearth.

"Miss Granger!" She turned again, raising an eyebrow expectantly.

Snape looked uncomfortable and cleared his throat. She was pretty sure she knew what was coming, but decided not to spare him. He'd called her stupid, after all.

"It will also help with discomfort... afterward. Apply it... directly. Go!"

Hermione couldn't help the laugh she left behind as she stepped through the Floo. Her panic had dissipated once Snape had told her the solution to Sirius' illness, and she was more in control of her emotions. That, and making Snape squirm never ceased to amuse her.

With the best intentions in mind, Hermione ran up the stairs of Sirius' home and entered the bedroom they shared. Sirius appeared to be asleep, and Hermione snuck into bed beside him. She decided it would be best to wake him now rather than risk his health by letting him sleep.

"Sirius," she whispered as she shook him gently. "We need to... talk."