Sealed With A Kiss

"So Kitten, happy eighteenth birthday," Sirius said, spotting the girl in the kitchen doorway. "I thought I'd have more time to prepare myself, rather than you coming to find me at four-am."

"I'd actually rather catch you before you have the whole 'I'm too damaged and dangerous' speech prepared," Hermione replied, smiling softly. "I couldn't sleep. This is a conversation we should have had a year ago -"

"You were on the run... plus you're a Muggleborn. You said that your parents understand the red strings from our world, but you're not considered an adult until you're eighteen there. I thought it'd make it easier on them too."

"They... they already know about you," Hermione admitted. "I told them two years ago. At first they weren't pleased, but I've shown them books on Soulmates and on bonds. They are more accepting on the fact now. When I was a kid, they just assumed that it was all just a game I was playing."

...oOo...

Ever since she could remember, Hermione had been able to see the string on her finger. Her parents stared at her in confusion when she had asked them about theirs, explaining to her that there were no strings and acting as though it was a game that Hermione had invented.

From what she could see, she was the only one with a string, but she reasoned that people only saw their own - assuming that the string was part of them. She couldn't understand why no-one else she knew could see their own.

It wasn't until Professor McGonagall from Hogwarts showed up, that Hermione realised that it was entirely possible to have a string, though the Professor had seemed deeply concerned when Hermione mentioned the colour of her string.

Hermione didn't understand it. The string was a dark-grey and she had assumed that all strings were that colour. But she was smart, and it took just the expression on the older Witch's face to tell her that her assumptions had been wrong.

When Hermione found time to herself, once at Hogwarts, she finally went in search of books that would help her. She didn't mention the colour of her string again.

...oOo...

"Am I that predictable?" Sirius asked with a grin. "I do worry that I'm too old and dangerous for you, but I know if it were someone else... like Remus, that was your Soulmate, I'd be telling him to go for it. What does he have to lose. That's what he's been saying to me actually - that after everything, I should let myself finally be happy."

"And Harry?"

"He's been quite accepting over the matter," Sirius replied. "He just wants us both to be happy, whatever we chose to do... but..."

He trailed off and stared into his cup of tea for a long moment, before meeting her gaze. "But before I even consider this, I need to know how you feel about the bond. You may not want this. I know there are... there are ways to break the bond."

...oOo...

Hermione spent the next few years looking at her string as she lay in her bed, whether it was at home, at the Weasley's house, or at the castle. Her research had explained to her that grey meant suffering. The darker the shade, the worse it was.

Hermione's was so dark it was almost black.

She quite sensibly told herself that, as a thirteen year old, there was nothing at all she could do about her string, nothing she could do to help her Soulmate.

After all, the string had been grey since her earliest memory - so whoever was at the other end was able to hold on until Hermione was actually able to find him and save him.

But before she could even start considering making plans about it, she watched the grey lessen, the string turning to a deep red, which still held traces of the grey.

It wasn't the shade of red she had wanted her string to become, but it only held traces of grey, and for that, she was happy.

Whatever suffering he had been through, it seemed that it was over, for the most part.

Hermione didn't make the connection between her string changing colours and Sirius Black escaping Azkaban.

...oOo...

"Break the bond?" Hermione asked weakly. That was one line of the conversation that she hadn't anticipated coming up. In fact, so far in her research, she hadn't even realised that it could be broken.

But maybe that was because not once had she considered not being with her Soulmate as an option.

Sirius nodded. "It has to be mutual," he said. "We'd both have to do the spell, it would cut the string. That'd allow you to be with anyone else who doesn't have a connected string."

"But... why would you do that?"

"Kitten, you're tied to an old ex-convict," Sirius said tiredly. "I won't take offence if you decide that."

Hermione headed towards the kettle, tapping it to heat the water to a boil. She began making tea, and fixed an additional cup for Sirius.

She set them down at the table, before pulling out a chair and sitting down facing him.

"How does it work when you don't have a string at first?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

"The books only say that the string is white. But does it lead anywhere?"

Sirius smiled as he thought back.

...oOo...

The man ranted and raved and Hermione stood, clutching Harry's arm, scared that the man was going to hurt him. But there was no anger running through the bond as he looked at Harry, only hope and anticipation.

She stayed silent, watching events play out, with her Professor rushing in, embracing the escaped convict. She listened carefully, trying to make sense of what they were saying.

How could she believe that Peter was still alive? That he was Ron's rat?

But her eyes moved down to her hand and she found herself examining the string. She had a feeling she could trust him.

His eyes moved down to her hand. "What..." he began. "Crap, I forgot you'd be so young... Remus, it's her!"

The two boys behind him look confused, but the Professor knew what the words meant. "She's fourteen," he murmured. "Don't burden her with this right now."

"You're right," Sirius whispered. His gaze met Hermione's. "On your seventeenth birthday, we'll discuss this. Now..." his gaze moved to Harry. "Onto more important things. Give us the rat and we'll prove that it was Peter. Trust me."

Hermione hesitated, watching the two men whose gaze kept moving back to her. "Give them the rat," she managed.

...oOo...

"It was strange actually," Sirius explained. "The string wasn't actually white, it was more transparent with a white shimmer through it. Black means your Soulmate has died, but white means that they have yet to come into the world."

Hermione nodded, fascinated.

"We were all gathered at the Potter's house that evening. Peter had made himself scarce, claiming that his mother was sick. Remus was mourning the loss of the Prewett Twins still, his strings going black, not that we knew this at the time. We didn't even know he had found his..." Sirius' voice trailed off. "You know Remus, he didn't want to burden anyone with the knowledge."

"Poor Remus," Hermione whispered, causing Sirius to nod.

"We were eating dinner and I reached out for the pepper. I had given up by that point that the string would ever turn red, but I saw the string turn pure white. The others around the table saw it too, only for a few seconds though. It changed from pure white, slowly becoming red. They couldn't see the red string, only I could."

"So you knew how old I would be?"

"I did," Sirius confirmed. "I didn't set out to find you, because you were a baby and that would have been creepy. I had decided to wait until either you came to find me, before meeting you, or until you were seventeen."

"So... was I what you expected?" Hermione asked nervously.

"Kitten, I could never have expected someone as amazing as you," Sirius replied.

...oOo...

Hermione and Harry hid in the forest, Buckbeak next to them. "It's almost time," Hermione said.

"Hermione... can you tell me what happened back there?" Harry asked.

Hermione hesitated. "Nothing at all -"

"Sirius knew you. Why did he know you? Why was... what will you discuss on your seventeenth birthday?"

"Promise you won't be mad at me," Hermione said. "But do you have one of those strings?"

"Yeah I do," Harry said. "But it... Merlin, Hermione. Where does yours lead?"

"I think you've worked it out," Hermione said, not meeting his gaze. She glanced at her hand. "He's terrified," she whispered.

"How can you tell?"

"Strings can change colour with extreme emotion," Hermione explained. "And since it stopped being grey... when he escaped Azkaban, I now realise, it's been changing faster than I can keep up with."

"Is that why you trusted him so quickly?"

Hermione nodded her head. "Doesn't yours... does it change colour at all?" she asked.

Harry just shook his head. "It darkens slightly and lightens slightly, but he... uh..." he rubbed his neck awkwardly. "I mean..."

"It's okay, I'm not going to judge the person at the end of your string," Hermione said with a smile. "Just don't judge me on mine."

"Do you think it's time yet?" Harry said, changing the subject, though he moved a bit closer to Hermione.

"I think it is," Hermione whispered. "Let's go and free Sirius."

...oOo...

Hermione couldn't help but smile. "So... if this is based on what I want, what if I want us to give it a try?" she asked. "I mean, the world made you wait for a Soulmate, so it was clearly quite picky over who you should be with. It wouldn't have bonded us if we weren't meant to be, right?"

"Are you sure?" Sirius asked, leaning forward on the table and reaching for her hand. "Being together will change your life... and I'm not just talking about how good the sex would be."

She snorted. "A bit ahead of yourself, Sirius," she replied.

"I meant that I'm the heir to the Black family. There would be a lot of pressure on you, media attention -"

"You mean even more than there is now?" Hermione asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Good point," he said. "I'm happy for this to happen as long as you are."

"I am."

"Should we seal this with a kiss?" Sirius asked, leering at her.

Hermione slipped out of her chair and moved around the table. Her lips brushed Sirius' softly before she wished him a good night and left the room.

"Merlin Witch, you'll be the death of me," he whispered, as the door closed behind her.

Thanks to Lynn for betaing.

Review Please :)

Bad Movie Tuesday Challenge - Soulmate!AU

OTP AU! Competition II - Red String of Fate!AU