Pawns & Players - Sirius Black

-37-

Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield  - Alfred Lord Tennyson

She walked down the stairs rapidly, jumping over the last few and landing on her heels. 

"So, what are you guys thinking ?" Spinning around to reveal the obsidian dress fitting her tightly, she ended her presentation with a proud grin, leading her way towards the boy, looking as fancy as she did, fixing his tie.

"Looking quite presentable as my girlfriend I suppose, though the dress would look better on me" He answered, grinning, taking her arm into his and finger gunning to his friends while leaving the Gryffindor Common Room.

"I know I'm fabulous" She retorted back, approaching him and accepting his lifted arm before redirecting herself to the Fat Lady.

"Why do I like this" Marlene remarked confusedly looking at them as their voices got lower and lower from afar.

"Simply means you're a bit late McKinnon" Remus replied, high fiving James.

That conversation must've gone on for longer while the two paced through the dark corridors, tainted by the night outside.

"How did they get the permission from Dumbledore ?"

"They pulled the marriage excuse, and well, since every Slytherin is somehow related to us, that also forces us to go to the ball"

"That's not true, Alexanders and Blacks didn't fully intermarry, instead they decided to screw their first cousins so I'm still not related to some of them" She answered matter-of-factly as if knowing the entire bloodline was her biggest accomplishment.

"Blacks are like rabbits, I swear there are maybe four purebloods I don't share blood with"

"And that's exactly why we're helping each other, so we don't have to shag our cousins"

Stepping inside the vanishing cabinet, followed by two other girls, the four landed straight on the other side in Borgin and Burkes before using the Portkey there to finish their path, standing before the towering Malfoy Manor, sighing one last time before knocking twice silently and one time sharply so they knew who came.

The large door revealed a house-elf with ripped clothing, which seemed ironic considering where he lived. 

"Oh come in please, Master and Mistress Malfoy just started welcoming their guests"

"Thank you Dobby" Their linked arms broke apart only for the boy to hold her waist tensely, both walking unwillingly their way to the ballroom where the melodious music was rising from the piano in the corner of the room.

"How many times did the two get married ?" He whispered in her ear, watching the people surrounding them.

"The other was for the inner circle and family, this one is simply a celebration ball"

"There were over 500 people in the inner circle thing"

"What can I say Blacks are in fact rabbits"

Their conversation was cut off by a familiar middle-aged woman and her husband.

"Oh you two would have such cute babies, Cygnus look at them" The woman pointed them to the man next to her, assumedly her husband.

"Surely Druella, maybe we can wait until she turns 16" Uncle Alphard had intervened sarcastically with a hint of irritation in his voice, making the couple around him find other people to converse with.

His dark long hair and beard were hardly laid back and the permanent smell of whiskey and smoke were spreading around him.

"Didn't know you two were-"

"Oh no it's not like that" He protested quickly. Maybe too quickly.

"We're not actually dating, it's just to get them off our backs" She joined him, partly because she didn't want him to think she was hurt or disagreeing with the boy.

"Yeah sure" He spoke in his monotone voice unbelievingly. 

"Since when do you come to these kinds of things ?" Sirius asked him, pointing his surrounding with his eyes.

"Obviously not with my free will. I swear this fortune is going to be the death of me. If one more person here tries to suck up to me I'm going to drop the Gringotts vault on their heads"

"And you still don't have any, you know" Sirius questioned with slight humour in his voice.

"I'm too gay to continue the bloodline, the only thought that keeps me alive is all their faces when they realize the heir of Alexander and Black are both the biggest blood-traitors there are" For once he chuckled, softening his facial features before walking away from the two, seeing his sister and her husband lead their way next to them.

"Oh, Sirius you have no idea how thrilled I am of you two, nothing better than young love am I right ?" She obviously had something else than love in her mind as finally having her son get rid of his "filthy beliefs".

"It's a pleasure to see you Mrs. Black," The boy's grip on her waist got firmer while his jaw clenched from what was about to come.

"For a moment I was so worried of him running around like a harlot, luckily he finally came to his senses"

Acquiring she couldn't hold either of them for another second, she rapidly figured a way to get them out of that corner. Smiling, "I love this song, lead the way Siri" she pulled his wrist laughing at what just got out of her mouth, waving politely at the woman she left behind.

"Siri ?" He chuckled loudly yet it came out as a whisper.

"That girl in Potions inspired me, and I did get out of your mother's face so do not complain"

"Then I believe we should complete our act" Extending his arm and taking her hand his, he pulled the girl to himself, intervening their fingers in one hand and the other allowing itself on her spine, each touch warming the colliding skins while softly flowing through the notes on the background. Their eyes gazing through the other and much farther, the world surrounding them felt extraneous, as if their existence was one and all other purposeless. 

The melody arising from the piano losing its promptness, they were moving, each step in perfect harmony, losing themselves in the others regard, they broke apart abruptly by the sound of the boy next to them, cleaning his throat.

"You two ?" Regulus's voice was surprisingly neutral, attempting to hide a slight hint of disappointment.

"Oh Merlin no, you know how everyone here is" 

The statement would be more of a reassurance to the boy, if he had chosen to ignore the way they looked at each other instants ago. 

The two brother looked at each other, awkwardly, like there was no bond there at all. But afar you could see, or at least feel a numbed pain, hurt and unspoken, as they parted their ways tensely.

And it was days, or nights like these, she wondered whether she really was this foolish as his fingers fiddled with hers unconsciously, watching his brother walk away from them next to his parents.