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She was nervous. He could tell by the way she held him slightly tighter around the waist as he turned the corner on the motorbike. Usually, Hermione would gasp in delight and lean into the curve with him, their bodies synced to the flow of the ride.
Not today.
He didn’t ask until he pulled up to the curve and killed the engine.
“How are you feeling, love?”
“Fine.”
Her voice was slightly clipped, indicating she was either annoyed or scared. He guessed the latter.
“There is nothing to be afraid of,” Sirius reminded her.
Hermione huffed indignantly before dismounting the bike. “I know that.”
Sirius smirked before pocketing his keys and offering her his hand. She hesitated only for a moment before accepting it. He didn’t wince when she squeezed a little too tightly as retribution for his teasing.
The bell to the storefront dinged as Sirius opened the door and escorted them inside.
“Can I help you with something?” the owner, Max, called from the back.
“It’s just us, Max.”
“Ah!” they cried out, which was followed by a crash and the rolling of a chair across the tiled floor. “Sirius! Hermione!”
“Hi, Max,” Hermione greeted. Her voice sounded calmer, but the tight smile on her face revealed she was still a ball of nerves trying not to hyper-fixate on the chair and instruments to her left.
“Today is the day!” they announced in a sing-song voice before flashing Hermione a large smile. “Your first tattoo!”
“Yep.”
Sirius tried not to chuckle when she popped the ‘p’ at the end. Though he didn’t like seeing Hermione in any discomfort, there were few things that could rattle his lioness love in this world. Evidently, losing a bet and getting a tattoo of his choice was one of them.
“Alright, so are we still going with the design you asked me about a few weeks ago?” Max asked. “I got it pulled up here if you want to take a look at it.”
Sirius cheekily smirked at Hermione and made a circular motion with his free hand. “Turn around, love.”
Hermione huffed and rolled her eyes before complying with the request. “You’d think I’d get to know what exactly is going on my body. And where.”
“But it’s a surprise,” Sirius reminded her. He placed a gentle kiss on her neck, causing a shiver to go down her spine. “Trust me. You will love it.”
Once he was sure she wouldn’t cheat, Sirius crossed the room and reviewed all the information with Max. When he was satisfied, Max began drawing a curtain for privacy while Sirius went to retrieve Hermione. He secretly slipped his hand back into hers, causing Hermione to jump in surprise before turning around.
“Well?” she asked impatiently.
“Come this way.”
Though it wasn’t meant to be a command, he could tell his words and deep voice were causing her cheeks to flush as he guided her behind the curtain.
“Alright, Hermione. I got everything cleaned and ready to go. Just need you to take off your shirt and bra, and we can begin,” Max informed her.
“What?!”
Sirius couldn’t contain his laughter at her outburst. Her righteous shock and disbelief were positively comical and exactly the reaction he expected when he had chosen the spot without informing her. “You said I could place it anywhere.”
“But WHY does the placement require my shirt to be taken off!” Hermione shouted.
“It’s more for your comfort than anything,” Max added. “Since you’re wearing a v-neck, you can just hold your shirt to the side, and I can work over that.”
Hermione glared at Sirius, silently seething at his cockiness about the whole situation. “Fine,” she spat before taking her seat in the chair.
“Go ahead and pull the left side down along with your bra. Don’t worry. I just need enough so that I can place the stencil and ink you,” Max assured.
Sirius sat to the side, savoring this monumental moment while Hermione held her shirt and tried not to fidget. He knew this was killing her, the whole ‘not knowing’ and ‘trusting the process.’ But the fact that his witch, his love, trusted him enough brought a sense of elation that, for the longest time, he had never believed he deserved–not until very recently.
Hermione had been the unexpected angel who came crashing into his life at what he classified as his second lowest moment. Though he had been acquainted with her through Harry, nothing progressed romantically until at least three years after the Battle of Hogwarts. She had come to Grimmauld looking for Harry, only to find him instead.
“Should you be drinking?”
“Should you be teasing me?”
That was all it took to break the dam and allow their passion for one another to be free. Their relationship had shocked the Wizarding World once it became public (poor Harry actually fainted when the Prophet article came out). Still, the couple couldn’t care less as they found comfort, love, and safety in one another. Two years later and they had never been happier.
Before long, Max announced they were done and allowed Hermione to sit up. They reached behind and handed her a mirror so she could finally see what had been permanently etched into her skin.
Sirius watched patiently as her face changed from fear to curiosity and eventually into unadulterated joy. He leaned over and kissed her temple. “What do you think?”
A small tear leaked from her eye as she reached up and stroked the red and black skin directly over her heart. “I love it,” she whispered while tracing the dots and lines that made up the constellation. “It’s Sirius, right?”
In lieu of an answer, Sirius smiled brightly as he tilted her chin up and marked her with the taste of his lips like the ink of the stars of his namesake upon her heart.