Child abuse casts
a shadow the length of a lifetime.-Herbert Ward Stormy
grey eyes stared peacefully up at the enchanted ceiling of the Great
Hall in Hogwarts. It resembled perfectly what the weather was
outside, storm clouds covering the full moon, lightning flashing
across it every once in a while and making the younger students jump
every. As another flash of lightning and thunder resonated through
the room, the stormy grey eyes flickered with pity and sadness. For
his best friend and fellow Marauder, Remus Lupin, of course. Who
wasn't at the starting feast with the rest of his classmates, and
instead was spending it in the shrieking shack alone. Sighing, he tore
his eyes away from the ceiling and looked around the Great Hall.
Where the other students, with the exception of him and two others,
were talking and laughing. As if everything in the world was great.
Not that it was great. What, with the 'Voldemort' fellow getting
stronger and disappearances or murders growing everyday. Everyone
knew there'd be a war soon, something worse than the war between
Grindewald and Dumbledore. But for now, they wanted to be naïve and
ignore it. Which worked for some people, Sirius supposed. It didn't
work for him, but hey…he was surrounded by Voldemort's followers
all the time. At home, (in which he had run away from this summer) he
was living with his parents, brother and occasionally his cousins.
Being the only Gryffindor in a Black family, you could automatically
guess what kind of summer that had been. No matter how short it had
been. Constant threats, insults, and abuse this summer, along with
his family talking trash about his friends had been the last straw.
And Sirius had run away in the middle of the night, and ended up
living at James' house the rest of the summer. It had been
the best, rash, decision he had ever made. Shaking his head
of the depressing and angering thoughts about his family and the
upcoming war that steadily loomed closer like the storm clouds
outside, he turned to James and Peter. Who were deep in conversation
about something. He tried to pay attention, but found himself staring
off and daydreaming again. Unless the conversation was about pranks,
girls, or Voldemort, Sirius wasn't interested. Eyes sweeping the
four new first years they had gotten this year, he frowned. They were
so puny…it was amazing that they were eleven and not eight instead.
He was sure he hadn't been that small when he was eleven, maybe
Moony…but that was because of his furry condition. "…don't
you agree Sirius?" "huh?" Sirius' snapped back to
attention and looked at James, who looked expectant about his answer.
Not knowing what he was agreeing to, but not really caring, he
nodded. Which seemed to make James look smug and Peter downcast.
Sirius briefly wondered how much bigger he made James' ego and
found he didn't want to know. Sirius might be egotistical. After
all, he was good looking, brilliant, and popular. But he knew when to
quit. Unlike his good friend Prongs, who didn't know when to stop
being egotistical and a show off. It was why he hadn't gotten Lily
Flower yet.
Emmeline
Vance stared down the table, past the wavy fiery red hair of Lily
Evans at James Potter and his cronies. Sure the trio were pretty good
looking, with an exception of Peter Pettigrew, but all Hades would
freeze over before she admitted it to them. Emmeline was the type of
girl who in a first meeting situation she was pretty shy, actually
painfully shy, and the trio had taken advantage of her minimal
blushing with their sarcastic flirtatious comments, Sirius Black
mostly, to point the finger.
But he soon realized that the little
shy new girl got used to the people she was surrounded by and either
had a very kind and odd nature or a quick tongued blatant one. Ever
since then she had to put up with Sirius's and his cronies'
foolish and immature behavior and he had to endure the wrath of her
tongue and scowl in her eye.
Emmeline was a fairly pretty girl, and when she wasn't on one of her rants it could really be noticed. She had light brown hair that fell softly to the bottom of her shoulder blades, pale green eyes and creamy white porcelain skin. She was very petite and everyone in her year towered over her, but she made up for that with her talent and quick tongue. Unlike Lilly Emmeline wasn't good at Potions and Charms, she scored fairly well in them but she exceeded in Transfiguration and Herbology, beating pretty much everyone in the class on a very daily basis.
Tonight Emmeline noticed the absence of the third of the trio, Remus Lupin. He had been looking off for days, he was the more sensible and quiet one, but always in for a run around at night with the others, which she boldly frowned upon. Sure, she had her share of mischief, but she picked her times, which was one in a blue moon, whereas theirs was every second night if they could handle it. She also noticed that Sirius seemed to be sorely missing him.
Emmeline was a very kind person; she was a secret keeper of her own kind, of the school type kind, without magic. She could keep her mouth shut for anything she didn't think was necessary to tell, and for that she was a very valued friend.
Soon the feast flourished and Emmeline let out
an exasperated sigh and she heard Lily do the same.
'Honestly,
I am really grateful that we get fed at all here but why do they have
to put the vegetarian meal in the middle of the table where they know
full well it won't get eaten there' Lily muttered
Emmeline
nodded in agreement
'I'll get it'
Emmeline made her way
down the table with the two plates in her hands. She let out another
sigh as she saw that the platter was directly in front of Sirius
Black. What. A. Coincidence.
'Hello Black' she muttered
leaning in between him and James Potter to serve herself and Lily's
food onto their plates. 'I see you are sorely missing Remus, can
you hold this please?' she said politely to Peter Pettigrew as she
handed him Lily's plate so she had a hand free to serve her own
food.
She gave them all a polite little smirk, rewarding Peter
with a gratifying smile as she retrieved Lily's plate and set off
happily back to her seat at the end of the table where Lily was
waiting.
'There Lily, I noticed that Remus was missing again. You keep on saying that Sev says he is a werewolf? I couldn't believe it'
Finally
tearing himself away from his self-pitying thoughts or sympathetic
thoughts about Moony, he looked down at the table. Silently surprised
to find food there. For once he hadn't been the first one to the
plates, loading his plate up with so much food that it threatened to
collapse. Of course, he'd do the same right now. He was famished.
Not that that was news to anyone…it'd be the end of the world
before Sirius Black wasn't hungry all the time. And he was hungry
all the time. It was a blessing that he inherited the best part of
the Black genes…impossibly fast metabolisms. Which was the reason
why he and his family members could eat so much and still be skinny.
Else he'd probably look like Crabbe and Goyle…or like his good
friend Peter. Grabbing everything that was in reach, he piled his
plate full, ignoring the amusing looks cast to him by James and
Peter. Or the sniggering from a couple of his other housemates. And
he was, as always, oblivious to the longing looks girls were throwing
him. Not that he was entirely oblivious to the fact that he
was rated the hottest boy in Hogwarts, James in second. He knew that
fact perfectly well…he also knew that by just winking at a girl,
she'd instantly swoon at his feet. And who could blame them really.
He was gorgeous by all means. With his striking black hair that fell
gracefully into face, soft and shiny. His eyes were a stormy grey,
always sparkling with mischievousness or mysteriousness, and on the
rare days…dark gloom that was sure to alert everyone that he wasn't
to be messed with, and that he was in one of his depressive moments.
His skin was pale, and his stature tall and muscular but lean. He
looked like the pureblood family he belonged to. Almost identical to
his father, he could strike fear if he wanted, and demand respect by
just acting a certain way. Of course, Sirius didn't act
like that unless he was trying to get his way. When he first arrived
at Hogwarts, he had acted like the rich, stuck up pureblood his
family wanted him to be. Back then he had wanted his family to
finally be proud of him…to love him. Of course, that was destroyed
when he got into Gryffindor. And so he had shed his aristocratic air
and instead become himself. Which had pleased the Gryffindors, who
had at first been deeply off at having a Black with them. Now
a days, you mostly saw him looking relaxed, carefree, laughing at
some joke he made or his friends made. Or you saw him looking
innocently mischievous, like a playful puppy who tried to look cute
but only looked guilty. Swallowing some kidney pie, his nose
picked up the scent of someone very familiar. He gave a hidden smirk
and looked up as the girl the scent belonged to, leaned across him.
Giving him more time to breath in the elegant and pleasing aroma she
radiated. Emmeline Vance. Someone he had watched ever since she came
back to Hogwarts with curves, looking prettier than ever. Of course,
he had known her quite well before. Having teased her endlessly and
flirted with her only because she was a very shy girl. Who blushed if
you said hello. But after third year, she had grown and now, if he
made a comment…he got a sarcastic, sharp insult back at him. It was
great. And it made him want her even more…in the sense that Lily
saying she hated James made James love her even more. "Hello
Vance…looking as lovely as always I see." he said, giving her a
wink. Causing a couple girls down from him to glare at Emmeline with
jealousy. Of course, he didn't see that…having eyes only for the
girl in front of him. After taking her plate back from Peter and
giving him a polite smirk, Emmeline left. Sirius' eyes on her the
entire way. "You know Padfoot…I have an inkling that your
having a real crush on this girl" James sounded amused and Sirius
snapped his eyes to his best friend. Scowling. "I do NOT
have a real crush on her. Sirius Black only has flings." he said,
frowning as he stuffed some more kidney pie into his mouth. Glaring
at James as he mouthed 'ya right' to Peter. Sirius looked
at Emmeline and shook his head. He didn't have a 'crush' on
her. Sirius only went out with a girl for a week at the most, and
then went off to another. It was what he did. Everyone knew that…he
was a playboy. Not one for commitment, and someone who was usually
just looking for snogs or more if the girl was like that. Which some
of them were. Of course, Sirius respected the fact that Emmeline was
beautiful with a brilliant mind and kind interior…but he couldn't
be looking for more than a quick make out session with her. That
was ludicrous.
When Emmeline had settled and eaten her satisfyingly vegetarian meal Lily gave her a smile.
'What?'
'He was looking at your butt again'
Emmeline shook her head in annoyance, but then laughed, the stupid git surely he had something better to look at, knowing that Lily would ask why, and certainly she did.
'Hey Lily, I know you're not going to be fully happy with my idea because you're not like that but I am going to say it anyway, because I am' She let a mischievous glint in her eye sparkle at the brightest and looked down the table at Sirius and then looked quickly back at Lily once she knew he had caught his eye.
'I bet I could make him stare all the way out of the great hall after dinner'
'You have already made him stare when you walked all the way down here' Lily said giving her that I-know-something-you don't-know tone that Emmeline had grown so used to.
'No I didn't!' Emmeline protested in confusion.
'You did too, you can do it without trying, and he does it all the time Em' Emmeline let a scowl puncture her smile, he thought he was one of those people who could stare at a girls butt just because he was popular.
'Stupid git' she muttered casting the scowl down the table at him, making sure he had received it, then she looked back down at the table, where the plates had vanished and the desert bowls were appearing.
She didn't know why but suddenly that little piece of information penetrated her good mood, it was as if it was a full balloon and Lily had just stuck a needle in it and it had deflated as quickly as it had popped, like hearing that some guy, not to mention extremely popular and lusted over, was looking at her in a way that which most girls would kill for was despicable and disgusting.. "He's such an idiot." She thought to herself "He thinks he is so cool"
After desert, which she didn't eat much of, she set her way back to the common room with the others, like Lily, they held their heads high, ignoring two different people for the same reason. 'Boys' Emmeline muttered as she passed, holding her head high, being careful not to catch any of the threesomes eyes..
Emmeline's mood at the moment seemed to change a lot. One minute she would be her happy playful self, the next she would be fierce like when she's angry and the next she would turn back into that little painfully shy girl who blushed at hello. She just hoped one of her mood changes wouldn't happen when she was around him, not when she became shy again; he seemed to love it way to much for her comfort.
When she got back into the common room and after she had had a shower, brushed her hair and tied it in a ponytail, changed into a light green tracksuit that complemented her eyes well and removed the little make up she wore she slowly made her way to the couch, curling up in the cute way that she did like always and pulled out a novel. She had become deeply involved in it when she felt a thud and the end of the couch sagged downwards at the person's weight.
'Yes?' She asked half distractedly, not paying attention to whom it was she was talking to, nor even bothering to look up from her book.