the_debt_of_time

Once safely back at Lupin Cottage, Hermione let out a loud sigh of relief and
collapsed into the large, fluffy armchair.
Lowering Sirius to the sofa, Remus removed the Invisibility Cloak, passing it to
Hermione so she could secure it away in her bag and return it to Harry. He then released
the Body-Binding Curse, watching as his friend relaxed into the cushions.
"I should go," Hermione said. "If I don't get back to the Burrow, they'll all come
looking for me. The last thing I want is for anyone to show up before there's been a chance
to explain. Certainly, not before things can be explained to him." She gestured to Sirius,
kneeling down beside him and affectionately brushing the hair from his face.
The hollow, sunken cheeks he had upon their first meeting in the Shrieking Shack
were gone, and his hair was no longer matted and hanging down to his elbows. He was the
Sirius she had come to know over the last handful of years, not having aged a day since he
had fallen through the veil.
As her hand brushed lightly against his cheek, his pale grey eyes opened and stared
up into her face. "M-My.. ."
Hermione gasped. "Sirius?"
Remus and Tonks flew to her side.
"Pads?" Remus asked, leaning over Hermione's shoulders.
"My... My-uh," Sirius repeated, dazed.
"Do you think that it was the potions?" Hermione asked, worried, as she cranked
her head to look up at Remus only to catch him sharing a knowing look with his wife. She
didn't have time to question it; her attention was returned to Sirius when she felt him
squeeze her hand.
He stared at her as though he were frightened. His free hand reached up, his fingers
brushing against the softness of her face, tracing the outline of her jaw.
She saw the beginnings of tears in his eyes, and her breath caught.
His voice was shaky, but clearer, when his chapped lips parted, and he whispered
again, "Mia?"