Pragma // s.b.

38

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I gazed at the snow covered fields whirring past out the frosted window of the Hogwarts Express. With the first half of the year completed and Christmas only a few days away, the atmosphere was joyous to say the least. Half eaten boxes of Berty Botts Every Flavored Beans and Chocolate Frog cards lay strewn across the seats in the cramped compartment that me and the rest of the Hufflepuff girls currently occupied.

"I can't believe Sirius is actually coming home with you", Amber giggled, tossing a bright white and blue striped jellybean into her mouth, "Toothpaste", she coughed, scrunching up her nose at the oddly flavored treat. "I can't believe I asked him to!", I said, my thoughts drifting to the conversation between the two of us. He had shook his head in disbelief and told me to stop messing around. I told him I wasn't and wrote to my parents the next day. They said yes of course.

So I marched up to Sirius the next day and told him he was coming with me to the farm for the holidays. He tried to say no, but I knew he needed it. If the one encounter I had with his brother was a good representation of the rest of his family, I understood why he wouldn't want to go back there.

"So", Skye started, "Are you guys...dating?". I glanced down at Poppy who sat curled up in my lap and bit my lip. To be honest I had no idea where we stood. We had been caught up in the end of the term with exams and packing for break and hadn't had much time alone. "I don't know", I sighed, "But hopefully I'll let you know by the end of break".

The train sped along the countryside, bringing us closer to our various destinations. The sunlight shone through the window and bathed our beaming faces in warm light and before we knew it, the train began to slow. We filed out of the compartment in a single line, our trunks dragging behind us. The steps leading off the train towards the platform angled downwards. Maneuvering my trunk in front of me, I attempted to pull my trunk down the stairs in the most coordinated way possible.

The weight of it thrust forward, pushing me backwards down the stairs. I let out a gasp of air as I felt myself falling, ready to hit the ground when one strong hand reached out and secured my waist while the other reached over my head and grabbed my trunk, stopping its dangerous trajectory.

"Try to at least make it off the train before hurting yourself", Sirius' amused voice sounded from behind me. I let out a laugh, as you do when you are so embarrassed that the only option is to laugh at yourself and pretend you aren't mortified. "That was totally on purpose", I smiled, reaching down and taking the handle of my trunk and pulling it towards me. "I'm sure", he shook his head, his eyes moving up to look at someone.

After saying a quick goodbye to the girls, my eyes followed his. "Ro!", I let out, reaching up and giving him a hug, "I'm glad you found us". Ronan's eyes wearily looked over me to Sirius, who slightly nodded in his direction and said, "Carter". Looking at my brother, I raised an eyebrow. He sucked in a long breath then moved past me, clapping Sirius' on the shoulder and saying, "Glad you can join us, Black".

A hidden smile fell across my lips and I tucked my hair behind my ear, "Let's go, Mum and Dad will be waiting". The three of us fell into step along the bustling platform, my hand brushing against Sirius' every so often. Why was something as small and meaningless as that making my stomach fill with a million butterflies. Glancing up, I noticed Sirius' jaw was tightened. He fiddled with his wand, twirling it between his fingers, a nervous habit I had come to notice.

"You nervous?", I said, lighting hitting his arm. He snapped out of his daze and smirked down at me, "I don't get nervous, sunshine". I rolled my eyes and moved ahead so I was in step with Ro, turning over my shoulder and raising my eyebrows at the obviously nervous boy behind me, "Whatever you say". I scanned the crowd for the faces of my parents. Owls flew by overhead, and crowds of people rushed past, reuniting with loved ones. I was about to give up and tell Sirius and Ro that we should just wait it out until the platform emptied when I heard the light tinkling voice of my mother through the crowd.

"Bri! Ro!", she called out. My eyes fell upon her and I ran forward. She stood slightly taller than me, at 5'4. Laugh lines surrounded her small mouth when she smiled, and the corners of her deep brown eyes crinkled when she beamed. Her long blonde hair that was sprinkled with a few grey streaks swung behind her in her signature french braid. "It's so good to see you!", I cried, throwing my arms around her. "You look lovely, Bri", she said, running a hand down my hair.

"Hello, Ronan", she smiled, turning to her youngest child. My dad wasn't far behind her, and soon he came upon us. His strong arms grabbed my shoulders and shook them, "Nice to see you kid". I grinned up at him, "Hi, Dad". I turned to Sirius, who was looking awkwardly at the ground, his hands shoved deep in his pockets. "Mum, Dad. This is Sirius", I said, grabbing his arm and pulling him forward. My mum stopped in the middle of a sentence she was saying to Ro and brightly smiled.

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Carter", Sirius said, putting on his most dazzling smile and reaching out his hand. My mother promptly ignored this and pulled him into a tight hug. "Please, call me Lynn". He glanced at me over her thin shoulders and I laughed, shaking my head. Pulling away, Sirius grasped my father's hand in a tight handshake. "Mr. Carter", he said. "Mr. Black", my dad said with mock sternness. "And call him Richard", my mum said, intertwining her fingers with Dad's and shooting a look toward Sirius.

"Let's get this show on the road", my Dad said, clapping Ro on the back and beginning to walk toward the parking lot. "Lynn insisted we drive", he said, turning to Sirius, "She's not the biggest fan of using magic when it's not necessary". Ro rolled his eyes in our mum's direction and said, "It makes life a pain in the ass". This made my mum reached back and pinch his ear, something he hated every since childhood. "Language!", she said, but laughed along with the rest of us.

The long car ride back home included lots of very loud and very bad singing on Dad's part. Sirius politely joined in the conversation when he could, laughing and chatting with Mum about their favorite types of cars and motorcycles. I wasn't sure what shocked me more, the fact that Sirius knew so much about these Muggle things or the fact that my Mum knew enough about motorcycles to have a favorite. Before I knew it, we were pulling up the long drive, and we were home. However, as the car stopped and we climbed out of the back seat, I felt different. I felt excited and nervous and unsure of what the coming days would have in store.