Orphic » Sirius Black

Chapter 34 - On The Lookout

The snow atop of the highlands shone bright under the late sunlight almost brushing the curfew time. When the daylight hours began to get longer, it became harder to get the students back in the castle on time. And most of them took advantage of it.

Sirius was sitting with his back on a tree, Juniper leaning on him. His fingers were busy between her hair, braiding two different sections as they both watched as James, Peter, and Remus played in the shore of the Black Lake, their trousers rolled up to their knees, throwing pebbles and making them bounce on the water surface. Lily and Marlene laughed as James's pebble drowned the second it touched the water.

Juniper glanced at the finished braid, hanging from her left shoulder. Small chunks of hair were slowly getting free on the sides, but over all, it was a decent achievement.

"It is quite good," she thought out loud. "You've gotten better at it."

"Well, I've been practising tirelessly," Sirius said, still focused on finishing the other braid. "My girlfriend loves them."

"Really?"

"Yeah. When my hair grows a bit more we're going to have matching braids."

"Wicked."

"Oi, you two, get over here!"

Lily stood at the shore expecting an answer, just as Sirius finished the second and last braid.

"We're good, thank you," Sirius yelled back. James rolled his eyes and turned on his heels. Juniper looked at him, one eyebrow raised. Sirius mimicked her. "What?"

"If you're not going, then I am," she said, getting up. Sirius reached for her ankle trying to stop her, but she dodged his hand. Laughing victoriously, she ran to the lakeshore. Once she took off her shoes and socks, she walked slowly into the water, hissing as her skin went numb with the temperature.

"How is the Ravenclaw-special-treatment?" asked Lily, handing Juniper the spare pebble on her hand, "Any better?"

Juniper pouted, thinking. She barely talked with any Ravenclaws now, with the exception of Judson, Maverick and Ophelia. The rest of her housemates had analysed the situation, and silently agreed she wasn't worth their time. They were past the judging glares and side comments; they had better things to do other than pay any mind to a Death Eater's daughter.

"Not really." All sets of eyes focused on the pebble she just threw, counting every bounce. One, two, three. "I'm getting used to it."

"Are they all still saying nasty stuff behind your back?"

Juniper figured Sirius must have told them about it. Not only the facts, but convincing them all to believe that Juniper hadn't had anything to do with Marcius nor the Death Eaters.

"Some," she confessed, swirling her feet in the water. "Most have stopped. I'm just ignored now."

"If you don't feel any comfortable in there, just let us know," James said, hugging her by the side, the brightest smile on his face. "Let us welcome you as you did with Moony."

Juniper forced a flat smile, hiding the fact that those simple words almost made her fall down to the ground. Instead, she twisted her wrist as a warm up before throwing the pebble on her hand, and everyone watched.

"That was bloody good! Five bounces, setting a record for the evening!"

Slowly, the routine at Hogwarts returned to have an even rhythm Juniper could easily follow. In the mornings, she'd have breakfast with her friends, and in the evenings, she'd spend time with Sirius and the rest of the boys. Some days, she'd walk with Judson to the owlery, and observe as the little bird flew away with a letter addressed to his mum. And every time, a sudden pain struck her when she remembered no owl had visited her yet.