Turning Tables
Close enough to start a war,
All that I have is on the floor.
God only knows what we're fighting for.
All that I say, you always say no.
Even as they fought, screaming at each other, they were still undeniably attracted to each other. She couldn't even remember what they were fighting about. Had she seen him kissing someone else? She didn't know. Finally, Sirius grabbed her arm and pulled her roughly towards him, slamming his lips against hers. Her eyes widened, but she melted against him, twisting her fingers into his shaggy, shoulder-length, black hair.
I can't keep up with your turning tables,
Under your thumb, I can't breathe
His hands moved to rest one on her lower back, the other behind her head. After a minute, the pair stumbled down the corridor, wrenching open the door to a broom closet. As they fell into the room, her last coherent thought was The brighter you burn, the faster the darkness returns.
So I won't let you close enough to hurt me,
No, I won't rescue you to just desert me,
I can't give you the heart you think you gave me;
It's time to say good bye to turning tables.
When she finally reached the Great Hall for lunch, the meal was almost over. Famished, she scanned the benches until she spotted Sirius. She smiled and sneaked up behind him. Remus was sitting opposite him and he noticed her approach, but she put a finger to her lips and he smiled briefly and nodded almost imperceptibly. He then proceeded to question Sirius about plans for Hogsmeade the following weekend, effectively distracting the other boy.
Grinning, she sneaked up behind Sirius and waved her wand at his plate of mashed potatoes. Unnoticed by Sirius, the potatoes stirred and rose, smacking him in the face. Gasping, and almost inhaling potatoes in the process, he wiped the starch out of his eyes and shot daggers at James. As his best friend vehemently denied being the perpetrator of the prank, he became aware of muffled laughter behind him.
She tried muffling her laughter, but failed. Finally, she just let the peals of laughter out. Sirius cocked his head and raised an eyebrow. A challenge. He scooped up some potatoes from James' plate and tossed with excellent accuracy at the near-hysterical girl. She glared for a moment and then dropped the façade of anger, snorting and laughing again. Excess potatoes had splattered the unfortunate boy behind her, and soon enough, the Hall had a full-fledged food fight taking place.
She defended and attacked well, but was eventually covered in various food substances. A hand under a table grabbed her and pulled her down. She looked into the laughing gray eyes of Sirius and smiled. She reached out and swiped a fingerful of what appeared to be vanilla pudding from his shirt, licking it from her finger. He barked out a laugh and wiped some jelly from her face, leaning in to kiss her softly. "Well done," he murmured satisfactorily against her lips.
Next time, I'll be braver; I'll be my own savior
When the thunder comes for me
Next time, I'll be braver; I'll be my own savior
Standing on my own two feet.
She waited in the corridor for him to leave the classroom. He walked out, craning his head to look for her, and she grabbed the edge of his sleeve, towing him into an empty classroom nearby. He knew immediately that something was wrong; she wouldn't meet his eyes. Concern in his eyes, he reached for her hand. "What is it? What's wrong?" He rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand. "It's okay," he crooned. "What's the matter?"
She slid her hand from his grasp, turning away. "Sirius…" she whispered, her voice cracking with emotion. "…I saw you with Brenna." He froze. Brenna? Oh, no… "Brenna?" he repeated. "Brenna is nothing. You have to believe me this time," he said vehemently. "She's jealous and she wanted me back. She pushed herself on me. I swear, I didn't let her do anything more than kiss me. Please…" He trailed off.
Tears gathered in her eyes as she turned to him. "You expect me to believe you? After all those times… Miranda, Nicole, Sarah… Brenna. After all that… You expect me to believe you now?" Her voice went from angry to sad. Sirius' heart sank. I deserve this. I should never have lied to her about the others. She'll never trust me again.
He cupped her cheek in one hand, looking seriously into her eyes. "No." He stepped away, trailing his fingers down her jaw and wiped a tear from her cheek. He leaned down to give her one last kiss, but stopped and pulled away regretfully when he felt her tense. With a sad smile, he turned and walked back to the door of the classroom. With his hand on the knob, he stopped and turned back to her, a strange expression on his face.
She stood frozen by the teacher's desk. That's it? It's over, just like that? She watched as he waited a second and then dropped his eyes, twisting the doorknob and slipping out into the corridor. The door clicked softly shut behind him. Tears fell thick and fast, and she sank to the ground, vision blurry. Have I done the right thing? Was he lying? She'd never know.
I won't let you close enough to hurt me
No, I won't rescue you to just desert me
I can't give you the heart you think you gave me
It's time to say goodbye…
ALTERNATE ENDING (For those who hate depressing endings.)
She stood frozen by the teacher's desk as he walked away. That's it? It's over, just like that? He turned, his hand on the knob, and his eyes found hers. Her breath caught. Something in his eyes… Regret. Could he be telling me the truth this time? Can I trust him anymore? Unconsciously, she took a step toward him. That step became another, and she ran to him, colliding with him and tilting her face up to his, sliding her arm around his neck. He bent his neck and kissed her, his lips smiling against hers. "They say that if you let something go and it comes back to you, then it's yours. I guess you're mine."
A/N - That alternate ending was actually the original ending, but I thought the new one fit better with the song's lyrics. So there's an alternate ending for all you folks who wanted to see OC and Sirius make up. (I do hate to cause him pain, so I like that one a teensy weensy bit better than the official ending.) You may have noticed that nowhere do you get any hints at all about who the OC is. I decided I wanted to keep it vague, so it's always "she," "her," etc., no name or description. I'm not sure why I did that, but I kinda like it. I also kept the dialogue to a bare minimum. It's a new style for me, and I've only done one other one-shot before, so I'd love your comments.
I went through it a couple times, but if you see any problems, feel free to point them out and I'll get them fixed up. Also, I would love some constructive criticism! This is the very first Marauder-era HP fic I've done, and my first Sirius fic (believe me, more will come! I have a longer, hopefully not as depressing one in the works). The only other HP story I've completed is The Muggle Next Door, a Draco/OC fic. I have that on the computer, and I am starting to post a few chapters of that at a time. If anyone's interested in beta-ing that, it would be much appreciated.
Loved it? Hated it? I'd love to have your thoughts and which ending you prefer and why. Tell me what you think! Click that little blue button and send me a review!