Chapter One: Sirius Makes A Mistake

Lily Potter and Sirius Black tramped through the snow in the wintery afternoon beside each other. They passed blue trees with long skeletal branches reaching out like fingers toward the silver sky, stomping their way through the silent forestry in boots and long cloaks, the cloaks pulled up around their bodies and up over their heads.

"I don't see why we had to Portkey five miles outside the bloody place," Sirius muttered.

"The Veela are tricky. Protective of their camps. They're a kind of fairy classification. You know what fairies are like about their circles," said Lily, seeming calm and unfazed by their walk through the snow.

"I still don't think this is going to work," Sirius admitted. "I know the Order wants the Veela on their side and all. I just don't think the Veela take sides. It's not their way."

"Quite right. They're not like centaurs, so philosophical and distant from events," said Lily, frowning, troubled. "But they are very grey - quicksilvery. And in result they're just the same as the centaurs: no sides.

"Still." She rallied herself. "James was busy on a different mission. The two of us were ordered to go and we have to, that's all."

They were silent, their breaths coming out in mists before them, their wands out as pointers. Finally, they came to the edge of a forest clearing - and Lily let out a soft breath of awe.

There was a circle of colorful silk tents and all around them, the snow had mysteriously melted away to reveal warmth and soft, deep brown earth. A cheerful fire crackled in the center of the circle of tents. And floating serenely around them were - all the air seemed to have suddenly disappeared for Sirius - tall, beautiful Veela, inhuman and inhumanly gorgeous, with pale skin and long silvery-blonde hair.

Sirius had leaned forward, smiling dreamily, opening his mouth to say something incredible, something impressive -

Lily smirked wryly and tugged at the shoulder of his cloak. "Sirius." She tapped him on the shoulder - and snapped him out of it.

He shook his head to clear it as if drunk, and scowled sourly down at the snow. "Damned Veela," he muttered as the spell broke.

"Don't say that too close to them," said Lily in wry amusement. "Let's go."

And they walked forward cautiously into the camp - pausing rather close beside each other when all the Veela turned to look at them.

"Ah. The Order members," said a maternal-looking slightly older Veela, still with that incredible beautiful quality, folding her hands and smiling thinly. She was impossible to read. "Yes, please come in. You are welcome here." She moved aside and gestured gracefully behind her into the camp.

The other Veela moved aside as well and made a path for Sirius and Lily as they walked cautiously into the clearing with their packs over their shoulders, slowly putting their wands away. They immediately relaxed - feeling a sudden flood of warmth inside the fairy or Veela circle.

One young woman Veela saw Sirius and she smiled sharply. Sirius was a true Black, a handsome young man, with wide, deep black, heavy lidded eyes; striking strong features with high cheekbones, and a wild mess of black hair.

The Veela came forward and turned on her full charm, all her magical power - placing a delicate, graceful hand on his shoulder and smiling charmingly at him. "You - you are single, yes?" she said coyly, crafty and pretend shy.

Lily smirked. "He is," she answered dryly for him. "I'm married to his friend James."

The Veela brightened - but Sirius had turned on full Occlumency shield against the onslaught, and he scowled, shrugging himself out from underneath the surprised Veela's hand. "My apologies," he said sharply, barking the simple sentence with so much behind it. "I do not appreciate being bewitched, and I make it a habit not to make love to things that aren't human!"

He stormed into the colorful silk tent whose door remained tied open, which had clearly been made up for the travelers.

Lily looked frantic. "Oh - I'm sorry - he's no good at diplomacy - he's usually so good with women and with people, but he had - an interesting upbringing -" Her bright green, almond shaped eyes darted everywhere in her delicate, heart-shaped face, and then she fled into the tent behind Sirius, long straight dark red hair flying back behind her. "Sirius! Sirius!" she hissed, sounding annoyed. Then the tent fluttered closed behind her, and the Veela were alone.

The Veela Sirius had turned down and insulted slowly grew angry. Her fist clenched where she had touched his shoulder. Wings grew black and leathery behind her, her eyes grew red, and as her previously beautiful face twisted into a horrific snarl, a tiny fireball appeared floating before her eyes -

"He is usually good with women - but he will not mate with me - because I am not human -" she hissed.

"It is too bad. He is good-looking," said the maternal Veela, the head of the camp, rather clinically. She watched the angry Veela quietly out of the corner of her eye - and then smirked, placing a hand on the young Veela's shoulder.

The young Veela paused, unwinding and transforming back, and looked up at her with big, hurt eyes.

"Daughter, I know what will assuage your hurt," said the lead Veela. "Not many outsiders know it, but when Veela wish to, they can possess other female creatures sensually - providing those creatures are… willing.

"That beautiful red-haired woman. She is human, is she not? He would have sex with her."

"But Mother," said the Veela, puzzled, "why would either of them be willing? She is married to his friend."

"Oh, we just need to… loosen them up a bit. With some of our special seductive magic, the kind laced in our food and drink. The kind that makes desire run haywire.

"Why don't we throw… a revelry tonight?"

The mother Veela smiled sharply as all the other young Veela brightened - her daughter most of all.

Still bickering -

"How could you have insulted her?! You don't know who she is!"

"She tried to magically seduce me! It's practically rape! And besides, she's probably no one important -"

Sirius and Lily walked back outside their tent - and paused, seeing the camp totally transformed.

Great tables filled with platters of food and wine filled the circle of tents, lit by cheerful flickering torches. Places to sit had been set along the campfire in the strange, snowless warmth, with that snowy winter's forest night everywhere outside them. The Veela were partying, cheering, eating and drinking - strangely delightful in their happy ethereal beauty.

"Come!" said the head matron cheerfully, waving to the Order members. "In honor of our guests! There shall be a revelry this night!"

"But the serious stuff -" Sirius began, frowning, puzzled.

"Can be saved for later. Come on," said Lily cheerfully, turning to smile at Sirius. "This is in our honor. It would be rude to refuse."

"Come, witch and wizard. Join us," said the head matron with serene warmth, holding out a hand.

And so Lily and Sirius were ushered into the circle of firelight. They were sat around the campfire and loaded with food and drink - which they consumed eagerly.

"This is like ambrosia!" said Lily enthusiastically, trying more after she'd had her first sips and bites.

"I think we should demand this every time we visit a new camp of magical creatures," said Sirius, his previous worries forgotten, digging in enthusiastically to the food and drink not unlike a fun-loving puppy.

Unseen by either the witch or the wizard, behind their backs the Veela shared smirks.

"Foolish humans," one whispered to another in passing. "We never had an intention of joining either of their war parties anyway."

The two speaking shared a soft, enchanting giggle.

Lily and Sirius ate and drank more and more - the more they consumed, the more they found they couldn't stop themselves -

And somewhere along the night, they had become much closer, sitting beside each other in the firelight, legs and knees brushing. The only two humans in the camp, they looked up at each other in surprise -

And their eyes darkened, warmed. They leaned reflexively closer to one another.

And Sirius noticed the way the firelight glowed warm against Lily's cheekbones, sparkling in her innocent green eyes - And Lily looked over Sirius's handsome visage, his wild dark hair and eyes and his bad-boy cheer, which suddenly seemed so much more distinct for her than it had ever been before -

The young princess Veela flitted ghostly into Lily's body from behind. Lily straightened and gasped, possessed, eyes glowing - still seeing and feeling everything that was going on, but having no real control over any of it -

Then the Veela Lily took Lily's previous desire, leaned forward, and kissed Sirius. He stiffened in surprise - then sighed and slowly leaned into the kiss.

Veela Lily took Sirius by the arms, and as their hands and lips were all over each other and in each other's hair, they backed up into the firelit, colorful silk tent for the guests and collapsed over onto the sumptuous bed inside. Lily was twice as enticing as a Veela, and both of them were drunk off of enchanted seductive wine, and Sirius was entranced.

Completely entranced.

They made passionate love there in that bed that winter's night. And, when they had finally fallen asleep in each other's arms, the princess Veela ghosted back out of Lily and fled the tent.

The camp was calm now. The beautiful Veela were all sitting around the normal fire examining their fingernails, rather bored and disinterested. But they looked up eagerly when the princess Veela emerged once more.

She was as smug as the cat who had eaten the canary.

"That," she sighed in satisfaction, stretching, "was delightful."

"You realize there will be consequences from this, don't you?" her mother asked simply. "Consequences from your actions? Neither of them were using protection - they were too drunk off of our bewitched wine, not expecting it beforehand. And the witch is married to the wizard's friend.

"All kinds of things could happen."

"Or nothing could happen at all," said the princess Veela, smirking at her queen. "Either way, I don't particularly care. It is not our affair to get involved with humans unless they get involved with us…

"Isn't that right, my mother, my Queen?"

"Well, that will teach them," said the queen wryly. "To throw insults inside a fairy circle."