A Study of Opposites

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. If I did, Sirius would be real.

Part Two

His eyes darkening dramatically at the demand, Sirius rolled on top of her and did precisely that.

A/N - Here you go Worthfull1 (and everyone else), the second part! And look, it ended up being even longer than 11,000 words! ;) Enjoy!

After that, Sirius took every opportunity he could to shag his wife senseless. He usually finished earlier than she did, and more often than not, Hermione would floo into the sitting room, Sirius would grab her, and they would end up with him taking her against the wall, or pushing her steadily across the kitchen table as he thrust into her over and over, her cries and his grunts echoing through the house. He couldn't keep his hands off of her. They still kept separate rooms, but as time passed and Hermione began spending most nights in Sirius's bed, the wizard taking pride in the number of times he could make her come on his cock, and his hand, and his mouth, her room sat unused unless she needed a change of clothing.

Sirius was always the instigator, which most of the time he didn't mind. His witch had a young, nubile body, pert breasts and flexible hips, and though it was littered with scars from playing her part in the war, the older wizard loved every inch of it. He constantly thanked his lucky stars that Hermione wanted him just as much as he wanted her. It had been pretty much a given that he'd end up fancying her eventually, with him not getting any and her living under the same roof as him, but the same couldn't be said for the almost twenty-year-old witch.

Having been lost in a memoryless void when he'd gone through the Veil, and then been spat back out again a year to the day he'd gone into it, Sirius was technically thirty-eight years old. Still young in human years, and even younger in magical years. But spending twelve years in Azkaban had aged him both mentally and physically, and his body wasn't what he would've liked it to be. As a result, a small part of Sirius thought that maybe Hermione was only letting him get his end away with her because he was fucking good at making her scream, and since his wife hadn't come on to him, that little part sat there all the time, a constant in the back of his brain.

To say she surprised him the day she made the first move would've been a very big understatement.

"Can I see your tattoos?" Hermione blurted out of the blue one evening, while they were sitting in Grimmauld's library. Sirius had worked from home that day, but his wife had only been home for an hour or two, and hadn't yet bothered to change out of her office attire. He looked up from the book he was researching through, brows at his hairline, a smirk growing slowly when he noticed the nervous way she was fidgeting with the hem of her blouse.

"You've seen my tattoos, love. You see them almost daily, don't you?"

"Well, yeah," Hermione answered, flushing under the look in his eyes as he watched her. Merlin, the man could turn her on with a single tilt of his head. It wasn't fair, really. "But I don't actually get to see them. We're, erm, always in such a hurry – not that I don't like it when we hurry," she babbled, swallowing as Sirius's eyes darkened and he deliberately got to his feet, putting his book aside, "I love it, I do, but I don't get to see them in detail and I'd really like to-"

"Of course you can see them, pet," Sirius interjected, voice deep and rumbly. Hermione shivered and crossed her legs, pressing her thighs together. Bloody hell. "I would've shown you sooner if I'd known you were interested."

Two strides had him at her side, making the sofa dip as he took a seat beside her, settling into the corner. Wearing heavy boots, a long sleeved t-shirt the colour of wet stones and black jeans, he reached down and grasped the bottom of the tee, pulling it up and over his head, his hair falling around his face as he threw the garment over the back of the sofa.

"There you go. Have at it, love."

Hermione stared. His torso was on display before her, and while his stomach was just a touch soft, contrasting the ribs that still showed slightly through his skin, something that never went away no matter how much he ate, the muscles in his arms, shoulders and pecs were very nicely defined. Add in tanned skin over the hard muscle, plus the tattoos that dominated his upper chest and arms, and Hermione suddenly found her mouth going dry.

They were beautiful. She knew many of them were probably prison tattoos – when he hadn't been battling the effects of the Dementors, Sirius would have had to face the other prisoners, and the tattoos would've been a way to help him get through the years on the inside – but that didn't make them any less artistic. Apart from the Azkaban brand riding his neck, there was nothing graphic on his chest, just symbols of strength and power. A full sleeve graced his right arm, the ink so thick in places, Hermione couldn't tell what it was meant to represent. A lion in sketch crawled up his left bicep, a pair of antlers cupped his left pec, and she could see quite clearly the moon that filled the space over his heart.

With trembling fingers, she reached out and traced the dog that was crawling over his left shoulder, almost as if it was chasing the antlers and moon tattoo under it.

"No rat?" she whispered, breath catching in her throat when she looked up to meet his eyes. Her husband was looking at her like he wanted to eat her.

"No. Never even considered it. Guess even back then he wasn't important enough," Sirius answered, voice hoarse. Hermione nodded, looking back down at his chest. She watched her fingers continue to glide along his skin, dancing across the ink, tattoos that were his personal choice and ones he'd gotten to survive a life he'd never deserved in the first place, mixing together in a symphony of faded colour and vivid meaning. Sirius's muscles flexed under her exploration, and once or twice she was sure she heard him stifle a groan.

Brows drawn in concentration, her fingers crept down his chest and along his stomach, brushing over the hair that disappeared under his belt. Sirius swore through clenched teeth when her fingers dipped under the belt, and then his hand was capturing hers.

"Be careful, pet. There's no tattoos down there."

Hermione looked up. "I know."

With those words, she abruptly clambered into his lap and kissed him. Taken by surprise, Sirius didn't respond at first, but as he had an undeniably keen witch moving her mouth over his fervently, gripping the back of his neck and rocking herself against the bulge that had grown when her fingers had trailed over his stomach, that didn't last long. Sirius groaned at her assault, running his hands up and down her ribcage, before settling on her hips and beginning to guide her movements, his tongue dancing along hers. She devoured him eagerly; little mews erupting as she moved faster. Sirius's hips rose to meet hers, his mouth streaking down to latch onto her throat… and then she was gone from his arms, his eyes blinking open and staring after her dumbly.

Fortunately, she hadn't gone far.

Hermione pushed herself back into his legs and scrambled for his belt and the button on his jeans, tugging when they came undone, Sirius absentmindedly lifting his hips to help her. Three awkward jerks and his jeans were down enough to allow his cock to spring free, his lovely wife gaping a little at the fact that he'd gone commando. But the sight of his erection with its already weeping tip soon had her forgetting about him not wearing any pants, and she hurriedly climbed off him, reached under her pencil skirt and pulled her knickers down and off, then climbed back on.

All this happened before Sirius could get his head around the fact that she'd come on to him. He was still wondering over that, blown away by the fact that she wanted him enough to fucking dry hump him, when his witch took his cock in hand and hiked up her skirt.

"No, wait, what are you doing- fuuuck."

Hermione sunk down on him like an arrow hitting a target. She moaned as she enveloped him, and his hands once again locked onto her hips, the pleasure on her face and the feel of her walls, tight and wet around him, pushing him embarrassingly close to the edge. A breathy sigh escaped her lips once her thighs met his, and then her eyes opened one at a time, deep, dark chocolate meeting smokey, burning grey. She rose up slowly and sunk down again, her mouth falling open and her tongue peeking out, and unable to help himself, Sirius leant in to capture that tongue as his wife picked up the pace and began to ride him like there was no tomorrow.

He tried to slow her down; he really did. Her saying that they were always in a hurry had burrowed into his brain, and he'd been hoping to show her that slow and decidedly thorough was just as phenomenal as fast, hot and dirty. His fingers pressed into the skin of her waist above her skirt, curses filling the library as she rocked and rocked and rocked, gripping tight to try to slow her frantic pace, but Hermione was having none of it. She moaned and rolled her hips, effectively distracting him, and then it was a race to the finish. Sirius tore open her shirt and pulled down the cup of her bra to lave at her breast and bite at her nipple, his hips snapping up as hers sunk down. The sight of her folds taking him in again and again under an obscenely rucked-up skirt made him twitch and swell painfully inside her, and not wanting to go alone, two fingers dipped into her wetness slicking his path and began rubbing rapidly over her clit. Hermione whined and jerked in his arms, spreading her legs wider and grinding on his fingers.

"Oh God, oh fuck, S-Sirius, please, fuck, Sirius, please!"

His fingers moved faster, his wife surging over top of him, his balls beginning to tingle and his thrusts falling out of rhythm, their cries simultaneously growing in volume, growing and building and coiling and tightening…

The pressure snapped and Sirius's head shot back, bellowing at the ceiling as he came. His back arched, his lovely young wife echoing his shout, her walls clamping around him like a vice and extending his climax. A drawn-out groan fell from his lips as he fell back against the cushion, muscles slowly unclenching and the heel of one of his boots thumping against the bottom of the sofa, startling a snort from the witch now lying bonelessly against his sweaty chest.

"You still have your boots on," she muttered, lips pressing against ink. She smiled when she felt his silent laughter.

"That I have, love. You still have your skirt on. And your shirt – well, half of it."

That had her jerking back from his chest in a hurry. She gaped down at her ruined blouse and then glared at her husband, tugging her bra back into place. Sirius pouted as her pretty, pink nipples disappeared from his view.

"Sirius Black, this is one of my work shirts! You've destroyed it! What do you have to say for yourself?"

Sirius grinned and jerked her forward to give her a thorough snogging. Once he'd let her go, he sat back, that damnably smirk in place as he watched her blink dazedly.

"I'd have to say that I'm going to have to let you map my tattoos more often. Every day if you like. Over and over and over- ow! Oi, enough of that!"

He laughed as Hermione continued to smack him, wrapping his arms around her and tugging her to his chest, trapping her arms. Hermione sighed and relaxed against him with only a slight grumble, and more than comfortable, he rested his cheek against the top of her head and just enjoyed having her in his arms. Realizing after a while that the deepening of Hermione's breathing meant she'd fallen asleep, Sirius smiled slightly, closed his eyes and joined her.

~0~

They had their first fight a month later. It was a Saturday night and Sirius had been cooped up all day, having spent the weekend working on a project for Kingsley. He wanted nothing more than to get out of the house, and he was very put out when he brought the suggestion to his wife and she shot him down.

"Not tonight, Sirius. I've had a long week and I just want to relax at home," Hermione said, looking away from the fire and smiling at her husband – a smile that disappeared quickly when she saw his frown of annoyance.

"Aww, come on, love! Just one drink at the Leaky! You can handle being out for an hour, can't you?" Sirius whined, annoyance growing when Hermione shook her head.

"Too many people, too much noise. I've had enough of people talking at me."

"Well, I haven't had nearly enough! I want to go out, Hermione! Can't you just do this this one time? I feel like I'm wasting away here!"

Sitting up from the armchair she was curled up in, Hermione scowled at the man standing above her. Why was he making an issue of this? She didn't want to go out! She was more than happy right where she was! A heady mix of irritation and stubbornness shot through her, making her speak before she thought.

"So, go out then! You don't need me holding your hand, do you? You seemed to get along fine visiting countless pubs on your own before we got married, why change a habit of a lifetime?"

Sirius blinked and his face twisted furiously. "Fine! I will!" he snapped, turning and storming from the room. Hermione heard the front door slam behind him and she sank back into her chair with a forlorn sigh, her anger receding just as abruptly as it had appeared.

It was about fifteen minutes of brooding later that she realized that she hadn't felt the wards ping to let her know someone who they were set to had passed through them. Curious despite herself, she got up and headed for the door.

Sirius was sitting on the front step. He looked over when the door opened, and husband and wife stared at each other silently for a second, before a small, slightly sheepish smile tugged at the wizard's lips.

"I didn't actually want to go anywhere without you."

Warmth surged, and Hermione took a step forward and settled herself down beside him.

"How about we go see Harry and Ginny? Or maybe Remus? It's only the noise I didn't want, Sirius. I'm tired and I've a bit of a headache, which the Leaky would've just made worse."

"Why didn't you say that, then?" Sirius asked, looking at her, a frown in his eyes. Hermione shrugged.

"Guess I'm not used to explaining myself to anyone. You wanna go?"

"No, let's stay in," her husband said with a shake of his head, scowling at her playfully when she opened her mouth to protest. "Oi, none of that. I'm giving in here, pet, something that's not going to happen often. You should be taking advantage, you know."

"I thought you wanted to go out?"

"I do, but I think I'd enjoy nursing my wife back to full health more. We can go see Moony tomorrow, all right?"

Hermione smiled. "All right."

"Good," Sirius nodded. "Now, let's go in. It's too cold out here for you if you're not feeling well."

"It's just a stress related headache, Sirius," Hermione pointed out. Her husband grinned at her.

"Indulge me, yeah? This way I get you into bed, and we all know what fun that'll lead to."

Her laughter made his grin widen, and he leant in to give her a smacking kiss as they walked back into the house.

~0~

They got into their second fight – or maybe their first real one – when Hermione found out about her husband and Remus.

The werewolf had decided to throw his own Weasley-esk style shindig and the night had been a success. Sirius had enjoyed himself immensely, sitting with his old friend and reminiscing, firewhiskey in hand, but he'd noticed as the night progressed that his wife didn't seem to be enjoying herself quite as much. She was watching him and Remus, something in her eyes he couldn't read, and for two days afterwards, Sirius studied her back, wondering when she was going to broach whatever was bothering her.

Because something was bothering her. It was in the way she held herself, in the way she didn't let their conversations go any deeper than small talk. He was just reaching the end of his patience when Hermione walked into the kitchen and took a seat.

Sirius stopped rummaging through the fridge for the makings of lunch and approached the table, grey eyes wary.

"Decided to get it out, have you?"

Hermione frowned a little, but other than that didn't acknowledge the comment. She pressed her lips together and took a deep breath to steady her nerves as the wizard sat down and waited.

"You're bisexual, aren't you?"

Well, that certainly hadn't been what he'd been expecting. Sirius blinked.

"I don't generally put a label on it, love, but yeah, I've had a bit of both in my time," he replied slowly, cocking his head at her. Hermione nodded and drew another shaky breath.

"Did you and Remus used to be in a relationship?"

Her husband's gaze sharpened. "Now, whatever gave you that idea?" he murmured, watching her. Something was beginning to twist in his chest and it was making him uncomfortable. Hermione frowned, opened her mouth and closed it again, then shook her head.

"There's… there was this subtext in your conversation the other night. You were nostalgic, sure, but it was more than that. Deeper than that. I'm not stupid, Sirius, I can read between the lines."

"I never thought you were stupid, Hermione," Sirius replied, eyeing her carefully, "and I'll also never cheat on you, if that's what you're worried about. I take my vows seriously, no matter why they're made."

"I know that, I do, but I also know that there's more than one type of cheating. Could you please answer the question? I'd like to know."

"No, I won't answer the bloody question, because I don't see why I have to justify something like that to you," the animagus abruptly growled, more annoyed than the conversation warranted. The twisting tightened. He pushed off the chair and reached for the top cupboard, where he kept the firewhiskey. "It's in the past, love, can't we just leave it there?"

"How can it be in the past if it's reflecting in the present?" Hermione snapped back, rising from her seat and glaring. "He's married, Sirius! He has a wife and son! They were circling each other before you even went through the Veil, for Merlin's sake!"

"I know that!" Sirius hissed, spinning around and glowering at her angrily, the bottle wobbling on the countertop when his elbow struck it. "Don't you think I know that? He's moved on, and for fuck's sake, Granger, so have I! I'm married to you!"

Hermione stared at him. "Just because you're married to me, doesn't mean you're with me, Sirius," she eventually said in a small voice. "And it's Black now, isn't it?"

She left the room and Sirius stood alone in kitchen with a nip in his tumbler and his eyes on the stairs she'd retreated up, the snick of her bedroom door closing loud in the silence. Well, fuck if that hadn't gone downhill quickly. He scowled and threw the alcohol back in one gulp, gritting his teeth as it burned through his chest, highlighting the twisted knot.

~0~

Going to bed that night, Sirius fully expected to find it empty. His wife's room was much more of a spare room nowadays, the witch sleeping in his bed even when they didn't shag each other silly before falling asleep. She'd even moved her clothes into the closet, something she'd done without discussing with him first, and then had twitched with nerves until he'd opened the closet to hang up his shirt that night and had found the new additions.

Though it had flummoxed him for a second, Sirius knew his wife well, so all he'd done was turn and send her a single teasing smirk before climbing into bed and drawing her against his side. Hermione had held herself tense in his arms until she'd realized that he wasn't going to comment, and Sirius had literally felt her sag in relief.

Sirius found he liked it. He liked watching her go through her routine as she got ready for bed every night, liked waking up in the morning to find her curled into his side, and he loved being able to wake her up with his mouth and tongue in different places whenever the mood struck.

It struck quite often.

Already anticipating sleeping with extra space next to him – or not sleeping, so to speak – Sirius walked into the room and stopped when he saw her small form curled up in a ball under the covers. He hesitated in the doorway for a minute and then walked into the room, tugging off his shirt and jeans, slipping into the silk trousers he wore to bed. Then, he drew the covers back and slipped between the sheets, moving across the mattress until he was an inch away from spooning her.

She didn't move. He knew she was awake; he'd known as soon as he'd opened the door. However, she didn't make a sound, didn't acknowledge him, and Sirius found himself needing that acknowledgement. His hand raised, hovered over her shoulder, then fell. He sighed and turned over onto his back.

"We were together in school," he murmured into the darkness. Next to him, Hermione tensed, which he took as an encouraging sign. "Moony… Moony was there for me in a time when I needed someone. Needed him. He was familiar and comfortable and he made me feel safe, right when acceptance and a sense of normalcy was exactly what I craved. You know what my family were like, love."

"Yes," Hermione whispered, and Sirius blew out the breath he hadn't realized he was holding.

"Yeah, well, they kicked me out and James and Remus were there. Prongs had Lily, he always had Lily, even when they weren't together, but Moony… one thing led to another and before we knew it school was over and we were living together in a flat no bigger than a broom closet."

"You lived together?" Hermione asked, turning over and facing him. She didn't close the gap between them. Sirius nodded and turned his head towards her.

"For a while. They were some of the best years of my life."

"You loved him."

It wasn't a question, but Sirius answered it like one.

"Yes. But then Halloween 1981 happened and I went away for twelve years. When I got out… it was different. I thought at the time that he was different, and I suppose he was, but it was more that I was different. Remus reminded me too much of a dead past and a future I'd thrown away, so I stayed away from him." Her hair lay across the pillow. Sirius's hand rose again and then the strands were between his fingers like they belonged there. The tight knot in his chest eased somewhat. "'Course, I couldn't do that when he moved in once this place became Headquarters, but then Remus met my cousin and I saw absolute proof that we were done, no matter how much the git fought what was right."

Her curls dropped to the pillow and his hand cupped her cheek, thumb brushing along the skin. "Because it was right, pet. Remus loves little Tonksy. Loves her so much and I'm happy for them. He's my best mate, the only one of us four I have left besides myself, but I don't feel more for him than that. Not anymore. I swear it."

Hermione licked her lips. "If… if Remus had never met Tonks and had stayed single after he'd moved in, w-would you have wanted them to develop again?"

"I…" His mouth opened and closed, unexpectantly thrown by the question, and panic fluttered in his chest, tightening the knot again when Hermione closed her eyes and drew her face away. "No, look, don't do that. Please, I'm trying to be honest. If you'd asked me that question six months ago, I'm not sure what my answer would've been."

"Seems like you don't know what your answer is now," his wife muttered. Sirius sighed.

"Only because I've never thought of it and it stumped me for a moment. Memories are strong, Hermione. But that's all they are. Memories. When this law popped out of nowhere and we were forced together, I thought my life had hit a low note." He leant in and took her waist, tugging her towards him and pressing his face into her neck. The scent of her skin flooded his senses, helping relax the compressed muscles down his spine. "Turns out it was the opposite. I'm happy, pet. You make me happy. That's more than I ever thought I'd get after the thing with Moony ended. Please don't let something done and gone drop that note again."

He held his breath while she thought it over, air escaping in a whoosh when her arms reached out and encircled him, the knot dissolving as if it had never been. He squeezed her tight, head lowering when she muttered something against his chest.

"What was that?"

"I said this is your fault. All your bloody fault. I didn't want this to happen, but it did, and now I'm stuck with it. It's your fault, Sirius, and what's even more frustrating is I'm in it alone. You couldn't have possibly been less you? Stupid, ruddy arse."

Sirius frowned. "Love, I've no clue what you're on about."

"Of course you don't," Hermione sighed. Sirius's frown grew and his witch pulled back, kissed him softly then patted his cheek. "Don't worry about, okay? Go to sleep, now. It's late."

"O-kay?" he mumbled, thoroughly confused. Hermione just shook her head and settled into his chest. There was silence as they both tried to shut down.

Sirius's eyes opened when something floated into his head. "Hermione?"

"Hmm?" she murmured, voice slow with sleep.

"Your last name is Black."

He felt her startle into full consciousness and then felt her lips curve upwards against his breastbone.

"Yes. Yes, it is."

~0~

It was a month later when the ministry got walloped across the jaw because of their stupid, self-serving law. Sirius was working from home again, something he was doing a lot lately, and his quill was scratching steadily across his parchment when a Patronus burst into the room, startling him so badly, a giant inkblot squirted across the document. Sirius scowled down at it and then turned to the silvery wolf.

"The ministry's been attacked. I'll meet you there."

Remus's voice faded and the quill snapped in two in Sirius's hand, horror and panic rising in his throat like vomit.

Hermione!

The air twisted and pulled, squeezing him through a skinny tube, and then Sirius was surrounded by people swarming everywhere, screaming and crying, pouring from the entrance to the ministry. His head shot left and right frantically, feet running, heart pounding, and Merlin, he couldn't see her, she was here, she had to be, she'd left that morning, she had to be all right, she had to be, where was she?

Where was she?

"Sirius!"

The Animagus spun around to see Remus coming towards him, Harry behind him with blood trickling down his cheek. Another kind of panic grew and before he knew it, his hand was under his godson's chin.

"Fuck, Harry, you're hurt!"

"I'm fine, Sirius." Harry gently withdrew his face from his godfather's hands and sent him a tired smile, his trainee Auror robes tattered and dirty. "It's nothing, just got caught with a stray hex. The fight's over. Seems a group or two weren't at all happy with the marriage law and decided to let the ministry know that in a rather violent manner. They're dealing with the perpetrators now."

"Were there many hurt?" Sirius asked, even as his brain repeated constantly, where is she, I can't see her, she's okay, she has to be okay, where is she…

"Some. Not many. Most are already at St. Mungo's. They're just getting the last of them out."

Sirius's head shot back towards the building, his body moving him forward an urgent step. "Hermione?"

"Hermione? Haven't seen her. But she'll be all right, Sirius, you know she can take care of herself- Sirius, wait!"

"You should've known that would happen," Remus muttered to his ex-student as they both took off after the quickly disappearing animagus. Harry grimaced.

"Yeah, sorry, didn't think. She'll be okay, though, won't she?" he asked, suddenly looking worried. Remus sighed.

"She's Hermione, Harry. She's as good at looking after herself as my wife is. But for Padfoot's sake, I really hope so."

Sirius ran. The entrance was getting closer, but the number of people exiting it was growing as well, and the closer he got to it, the more his panic grew. He needed to see her. She needed to be all right. He was going to tear someone apart if she was hurt! Fuck, she had to be okay. She had to be! He couldn't lose her, he couldn't, not when he'd just found her!

Where was she?

"Hermione!" he bellowed, voice getting lost in the humdrum of noise. He craned his neck and shoved past the body in his way. "Hermione!"

"Sirius, the easiest thing to do would be to go to St. Mungo's! You'll never find her this way!"

"I'm not going fucking anywhere until I know she's safe!" Sirius snapped at Remus over his shoulder. "Why the fuck aren't you panicking? Your wife's here as well!"

"I know she is, but she's a fully trained Auror! I have to believe she's fine!"

"Yes, well, my wife isn't, is she? She could be hurt or… she could be… fuck. Hermione! Hermione!"

"Sirius?"

Her voice cut through the outcry, dulling it to a soft buzz in his ears. His body whipped around, grey eyes lighting on his witch standing at the edge of the crowd, looking around in confusion and a little bit of fear. She was wearing the skirt and blouse she'd put on that morning, her curls twisted up at the back of her head, and there wasn't a mark on her.

There wasn't a mark on her.

She was fine.

"Sirius? Are you here? What's going on? I don't- oh! Sirius, what are you doing? Put me down!"

The roar from the crowd faded as Sirius strode away from it, a protesting, struggling witch in his arms. He ignored her and walked for two blocks until he came to a bench, his body folding down on to it, his wife in his lap. His arms surrounded her and he buried his face in her neck.

"Sirius, just what do you think you're doing? What's going on? You can't just cart me off- you're trembling. Why are you trembling? Sirius, love, what's wrong?"

"I thought I'd lost you," he mumbled, wrapping himself around her like a vine. Hermione looked over at Remus and Harry in panic, but all they did was smile in assurance and quietly back away. "I thought I'd lost you."

"Lost me? Of course you haven't. Why would you ever think that? And what was going on back there? Sirius, please, you're scaring me."

"I- I just… I need to hold you. Need to. Be right in a minute, I just…"

"Okay, okay, shh, I'm here, it's fine. I'm not going anywhere."

"Okay," he rasped, breathing in her scent, basking in the feeling of her body pressed to his. "Okay."

He held her for a very long time before he was able to convince himself to loosen his grip a little. He sat on the bench and drew in one breath after another, Hermione trailing her fingers through his hair and pressing absent kisses to the top of his head. Slowly, far too damn slowly, the horrid, heavy feeling of despair and dread in his chest slackened, unwinding and morphing into a solid rightness. It spread and grew and poured through him, washing away the loss, bright and hot and true, and so fucking unending.

Maybe it hadn't morphed at all. Maybe it'd been there all along.

"I love you, Hermione Black."

All movement from the witch in his arms stopped.

"What?"

"I said I love you," Sirius repeated, voice getting stronger. He lifted his head and stared into chocolate eyes as wide as saucers. "I think I have for a while. But I'm a brainless dolt, aren't I, who can't see what's right in front of his eyes, so it took the thought of losing you to make me realize it. You don't have to say it back, I just needed to get it out-"

"I love you, too."

"You do?" Sirius gaped, drawing an almost hysterical giggle from his wife. She nodded her head, eyes sparkling, a flush creeping up her cheeks.

"Yeah, I do. I really do. I thought it was just me."

"No, it's not just you- wait a minute. Is that what that strange scolding was about? When you said you were in it alone?"

He scowled when Hermione flushed further and nodded.

"Bloody hell. If you'd told me then it probably would've smacked me into shape, and maybe then I wouldn't have freaked out so much when I couldn't find you! Where the hell were you anyway? You certainly weren't in that bloody building!"

The starry-eyed look vanished in an instant. Hermione's eyes narrowed.

"Sirius Black, are you blaming me for keeping the way I felt to myself because I was afraid of getting my heart broken? You arrogant prick! You should be happy that I wasn't in the bloody building!"

People poured from everywhere, but he couldn't find her. He couldn't find her. Where was she? He couldn't find her!

"You said you were going to work and then Remus tells me the ministry's being attacked! I didn't know if you were hurt, didn't know if you were still in the thick of things, I didn't know a fucking thing! Wherever you were better have been fucking worth it, Hermione, because I don't ever want to go through something like that again!"

He glared at her, heart racing, and Hermione's face softened. Something flickered through her eyes and she reached out and took his hand, placing it over her stomach.

"It was worth it, Sirius. It was definitely worth it. More than I thought it was going to be."

Sirius frowned. "You're speaking in riddles again, love."

Hermione laughed. "All right. It was worth it because I was at St. Mungo's-"

"St. Mungo's? Why were you there? What's wrong? Are you okay?"

"If you'd shut up for a minute, I'll tell you, all right?" Hermione grinned, shaking her head at his pout. "I'm perfectly fine. More than fine. I'm the best I can be." Her shoulders rose and fell as she took a deep breath. "Sirius, I'm pregnant."

There was a short pause.

"What?" he croaked, fingers clenching convulsively over her stomach. "You're what?"

"Pregnant, Sirius, I'm pregnant. You're going to be a father."

There was a rushing in his ears. Why was there a rushing in his ears? Sirius swallowed and sat, dumbfounded. He sat for so long, his wife began to look worried.

"Hey, you're happy about this, aren't you? It had to happen eventually. You've gotten me on my back so often that it was bound to happen, the law notwithstanding. Sirius? Say something!"

"You're pregnant?"

"Yes," Hermione nodded, watching him anxiously.

"I'm going to be a father?"

"Yes, Sirius, for Merlin's sake-"

She shrieked when the wizard shot off the bench and lifted her in his arms, twirling her around in a circle, repeating over and over, "I'm going to be a father! I'm going to be a father!"

"Yes, you are!" Hermione replied, shouting with laughter. "Now put me down, you goon!"

"Fuck!" the animagus swore, hurriedly setting her on the ground and splaying his fingers across her stomach again. "Did I hurt you? Did I hurt it? Is it okay?"

"It's fine, love," his wife chuckled, taking his hand and curling hers around it. "Now, let's go back, shall we? You've still got to tell me what it is that I walked into."

"No, no, let's go home; you need to lie down-"

"I'm pregnant, not a bloody invalid! Christ, you're not going to be like this for the next seven months are you?"

"You're two months along? Wait, why didn't you invite me to the hospital appointment? What did they say? Are there any potions you should be taking? Maybe I need to take some time off work. There's so much to do after all, the nursery, and figuring out who'll be godparents, all that type of stuff…"

Hermione shook her head in amusement as her husband continued to mutter to himself, not even realizing she was leading him back towards the ministry, where she was sure their friends would be waiting. He'd reacted so differently to the way she had when the Healer had told her. She'd been elated and then completely petrified. Still was, to tell the truth. Her husband, though, he seemed insanely excited, not even dwelling on the unalterable changes, and the financial cost, and the thought they might end up being terrible parents.

Then again, they were different people, weren't they? They were as different as night and day.

Fuck that, Hermione thought, her heart melting at the way her husband constantly reached out to touched her, almost unconsciously, as if he couldn't trust his eyes to confirm that she was still beside him. She smiled at him and lifted his fist to kiss the back of his knuckles. Who bloody cared if they were opposites?

After all, opposites attract.