𝙰 𝙳𝚘𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰 𝙳𝚘𝚟𝚎 - 𝑠𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑢𝑠 𝑏𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑘

Chapter 15

On the evening of November 2nd, 1976, Sirius Black found himself alone in the library with Aurelia Hope and Lily Evans, both of whom, for the first time ever, were not saying a word.

Every time he had gone to speak, Lily would pinch herself, before continuing to read, whilst Aurelia looked at everything but him, trying to keep her thoughts on things like homework, and what her friends were definitelynot doing.

When Severus had come by, Lily had excused herself to go talk to the boy, beating Aurelia to it by sticking her leg out, causing the Ravenclaw girl to fall to the floor. She had ended up breaking her nose, and it had taken Sirius ten minutes to perfect the spell to fix it.

Lily hadn't come back.

"That bitch," Aurelia muttered under her breath, realising that Lily had gone back to their friends. The clocktower had struck nine, effectively quieting her words, but Sirius' heightened senses from his animagus form had carried onto his human form, meaning he heard the words loud and clear.

"Who's a bitch, Lia?" he asked innocently, twirling his wand between his fingers as he became closer to finding out the true meaning of boredom. His dark, hair had begun to curl at its ends that danced across the tip of his shoulders, and Aurelia found herself brushing it away, tucking those stray curls behind his ear.

"Many people are, Sirius," she replied honestly, moving from her seat to perch herself on the arm of his. He raised his eyebrow at the boldness of her movement, but detected a hint of misery behind Aurelia's words, and so placed an arm around her waist, leaning against her.

"My father's a prick," he admitted.

"So's mine."

"He uses the Cruciatus curse on me," Sirius said with an involuntary shiver. Aurelia's hand reached down to grab his as a particularly painful memory flashed up, and he traced lines on her hand, trying to calm himself.

"My dad thinks I'm crazy. He's tried exorcisms on me, sent me to the asylum quite a few times, and refuses to leave me anything in his will. I quite literally have nothing to my name," Aurelia said.

"Should we be talking about this so carelessly?" Sirius asked. "Are we that damaged that we can only laugh pitifully at our trauma now?"

Aurelia shrugged, placing an arm around Sirius' neck. She played with his hair, inhaling deep scents of coconut from it. "I guess so," she said, her voice never wavering. "With Lily, I only cry about my life, but with you, I guess I can laugh. We're both insanely broken people having a deep conversation about how ruined we truly are."

"You are not broken Lia," Sirius whispered, looking up to the girl who was slowly creeping her way into his defensive heart. Like James, she was his best friend now, someone who knew where he was coming from when he froze randomly in class from a memory, and someone who would stick by him when he needed help with school. The tiny little Ravenclaw girl was only ever gentle and kind with him. "You may have had one of the worst childhood's imaginable, but still, you smile for everyone, and you're still alive."

"I could say the same thing about you Siri," she said with a tired yawn, slipping from the arm of the chair into his lap. She nestled herself into his arms, forgetting about the real reason she'd been in the library with Sirius, and closed her eyes, feeling safe in the arms of her best friend. "Your smile could light up the world if given the chance. You may have been broken once, but I can see the progress of unconscious healing."

Sirius found his own eyes beginning to close, and so he tucked Aurelia into his arms even tighter, revelling in the warm honey scent that wafted up from her body.

He had grown to love that scent that only Aurelia seemed to carry. It was both warm and pure, and stark contrast to the darkness embedded in his blood. Eventually, he fell asleep as the soothing scent graced his nose, both he and Aurelia welcoming the warm waters of sleep.

☽ ☼ ☾

Minerva could not bring herself to awaken two of her most promising students as she made her last rounds throughout the castle on night duty. After she had passed by the Gryffindor tower, James, Remus, and Peter had all approached her, explaining that Sirius and Aurelia had not returned from the library. Their hands had been holding both wrapping paper and ribbons, and Minerva had quietly remembered that Sirius' birthday was only a few hours away.

She'd promised the boys that she would bring their friend back, but she did not wish to wake up the boy when he looked so peaceful. Aurelia had curled up into a ball in Sirius' lap, her head nestled comfortably under his, and it reminded Minerva so much of her days at Hogwarts, when she had once upon a time done the same with the boy she had loved.

"Young love makes one's heart feel older, does it not, Minerva?" Albus asked, coming up beside her with a soft smile on his face.

"It always does, Albus, even when you yourself are younger. Shall I move them?" she asked quietly, and Albus shook his head, his eyes darting to the bookshelves surrounding them.

"Let them sleep, I do believe they have deserved this rest after what they have been through all their lives. Besides, I have a bet to win with Horace, and this does make my heart giddy to think I may earn myself a pair of new socks," he said with a slight giddiness to his voice, turning away from the two sleeping students. Minerva summoned a blanket from her wand, draping it over Sirius and Aurelia, and fondly, she patted the top of Sirius' head.

"As much as the boy annoys me, I will miss him when he leaves," she admitted, taking Albus' arm. The two teachers walked out of the library at an easy pace, passing Madam Pince who had also fallen asleep, although with her nose stuck in one of her beloved books.

"If he joins the Order, then you shall see him all the time Minerva," Albus reminded her, his tone now becoming more solemn.

"You know I don't agree with the idea of the Marauders and the girls joining. They're children, Albus. They'll never be free if they join."

"She'll never be free if he doesn't join, and I know you've seen how much Sirius and James care for Aurelia and Lily. Their freedom will only come once this war is complete," Albus said, turning back to look at the two sleeping students. Their hands were now intertwined, and the moonlight cast an almost heavenly halo onto the pair.