𝙰 𝙳𝚘𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰 𝙳𝚘𝚟𝚎 - 𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑢𝑠 𝑏𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑘

Chapter 10

It was late in the afternoon by the time the six girls left the warm bookshop run by a small half-goblin woman called Euridice, who had been more than happy to provide a comforting space for them all to read together. Kira, Dorcas, Alice, and Wendy had walked ahead, desperate to make it back to the castle in time for supper, but Lily and Aurelia had wanted to make a stop by Honeydukes, to pick up some sugar quills.

"So, how's your study sessions with Sirius going?" Lily asked kindly, as she and Aurelia entered the almost empty Honeydukes.

"He's a gem, honestly. Always asking questions and helping me in return with my astronomy work. He receives a few wary looks from a few of the other Ravenclaw's studying in the common room, but he always ignores them, focusing his entire attention on me and our work," Aurelia explained with a happy sigh, plucking a box of sugar quills from the shelf.

Lily looked over to her closet friend, leaning her head on her shoulder. "Sounds like he fancies you, Lia."

Aurelia scoffed, kicking at some dust with her boot. "Sirius Black doesn't fancy anyone, Lil. He doesn't have any relationship with anyone if you don't count James. He's only close with his Marauders, and something inside of me tells me that he's got his own reasons for being so closed off to so many people. I'm his friend, Lil, and I am glad to have made his acquaintance."

"Well, whatever the case is, I am glad to see you make new friends. You're my best friend, Lia, and I adore you, but your social circle cannot just consist of our small six. Having someone like Sirius as your friend has already opened you up, even just when we speak. You engage more in friendly conversations."

"Are you saying that I used to be boring, Lil?"

Lily's eyes widened. "Of course not, Lia! I'm just saying that you smile more now, and the happiness you radiate is the same as it was back during our first year, before everything started going downhill for people like us."

The two girls fell silent, as if suddenly remembering the predicament that plagued the back of their minds at every second. They realised that perhaps stopping at Honeydukes without any of their friends was perhaps not the brightest of ideas.

A few Hogwarts students still lingered out on the streets.

Most of them out to see if they could target a few unfortunate muggle-borns.

"Lily, we can't face all of them," Aurelia said in an overly calm voice. "Even if we used magic, it's ten of them against us two. And with how the ministry is now, we couldn't get away with self-defence."

"Then we'll walk you back," two voices said in unison, causing the girls to jump. Sirius and James stood a few feet behind them, arms full to the brim with all kinds of sweets. Remus and Peter were already at the counter, paying for their own sweets.

"You sure you want to walk through that many people who loathe you?" Lily asked, her eyes remaining on James' form. He smiled at her, one of an unusual gentle manner that many rarely saw, and he nodded, whilst Sirius walked up to Aurelia, taking her box of sugar quills from her arms.

"You two are our favourite Gryffindor and Ravenclaw girls," Sirius said, beginning to walk towards the counter. He placed Aurelia's sweets on the counter, ignoring her protests, and paid for them as well as his own things, before handing the sugar quills back.

"Sirius! I could pay for them myself!" Aurelia objected, but he shook his head, looping his elbow with hers.

"Doesn't mean you have to. I owe you for the past four studying sessions and paying for sweets honestly won't cut it for me, but it is the least I can do, Lia."

He smiled at her with a warmth that made Aurelia's stomach flutter, much to her surprise. James and Lily caught up to the two, with James holding Lily's sweets in his arms, and both Remus and Peter were by the door, umbrellas coming out of their wands to block the rain that had begun falling outside.

Sirius and James did the same once they were outside, with James's tugging on Lily's arm to pull her under his transparent umbrella, and she blushed, accepting his arm by placing her hand in the crook of his elbow.

Aurelia lay her head on Sirius' shoulder, tired from the day she had had with her best friends, and he looked down at her, still with that warm smile on his face. "Get up to much today?" he asked with a soft, yet cheerful tone. She yawned, and nodded, her eyes glancing up at the boy.

"Well, we spent most of our day down by Euridice's Book Shop, reading together for a good few hours. Of course, we had the most delicious butterbeer this morning courtesy of Madam Rosmerta, and I looked in a few of the windows to see if I could find any early Christmas gifts, but I'll have to save up a bit for the gift idea I have for Lily," Aurelia rambled, thinking back to the small, enchanted bauble that was in the shape of a fluttering book.

It could read aloud any story, just by simply asking it too, and Aurelia had remembered Lily complaining that sometimes when she wanted to read, her eyes were either too sore or tired, leaving her unable to.

"That's sweet of you, thinking of Christmas gifts this early," Sirius said sincerely, and Aurelia smiled.

"It's the least I could do, considering what all the girls have done for me these past six years. My parents aren't exactly the loving type, so most of the time, Lily or Wendy let me stay over at their homes for Christmas."

"James does the same for me, although now I live with his family. My family wasn't exactly the loving type either, mostly because I was placed in Gryffindor and didn't see the wizarding world as they did," he admitted, absentmindedly rubbing Aurelia's waist with his thumb.

"My parents are the same, though they thought I was the devil incarnate because of my accidental magic. Every summer, I go back, purely because I still love my mother, who has begun to slightly understand the wizarding world. As for my father, well, he's spent every summer trying to either perform an exorcism for me or placing me in an asylum."

"Your own father does that to his child?" Sirius asked in disbelief. Aurelia nodded, playing with the faint scars on the back of her hand.

"He believes that with corporeal punishment and adequate time praying for forgiveness of my sins, I will once again be his daughter. He even once accused my mother of sleeping with the devil, claiming no child of his could have such wickedness."

"He sounds wonderful. I think your father and mine would get along like an old married couple," Sirius said sarcastically, as Aurelia nodded with a slight shiver. He immediately wrapped his leather jacket around her, still wearing it himself, and pulled her as close to his body as he could, hoping to warm her up.

"Hey Lia, can I borrow your notes for charms? I kind of lost mine," Peter said quietly, trailing off at the end. The mousy-haired boy looked at her through his rather long eyelashes, and gave her a half-smile, which sent a short jolt of pain through her stomach.

But she didn't flinch, knowing that the boys would become concerned, and that was not what she needed.

But something about Peter was set for the future.

Something wrong.

"Sure, Pete, I'll run up and get them for you before dinner, I presume you'll all be in your normal spots?"

The four nodded, and Peter whispered a word of thanks.

Aurelia could not shake the feeling in her gut.