AN: Hi! Another chapter, FINALLY! I rarely have time to do any writing nowadays since the birth of my daughter, but I am trying to get chapters up as much as possible. I do hope that those of you who have been reading this will stick through until the end, even though the updates will be a little sporadic. Please enjoy this chapter and I appreciate any review, so long as its constructive. Thank you. :)

Chapter Six

Charlus sat in his office staring blankly at a pile of paper work. He knew he was supposed to be filling it out but he couldn't find it in himself to do anything, his ink pot and quill sat before him silently mocking his lack of will until finally he swore to himself and stood up. He walked to the window and stared out across the gardens, the trees danced as the wind ran through their branches, flowers bobbed their heads frantically and the king felt a chill down his spine that had little to do with the cold. His mind drifted back to his last encounter with Sirius Black, he remembered the look of fierce pain in those cold, familiar silver eyes. The boy was dangerous, the King knew this but he couldn't remove the family from his castle simply on the basis of suspicion. It would reflect badly upon him and the other noble's would complain, he needed them on his side. He sighed deeply as the wind blew and whistled through the walls, again he shivered and finally tore his gaze away from the gardens. He would only have to put up with the Black's for less than a week longer and then they would be leaving, he stared at the paper work and thought of his wife's gentle but stern admonishments about him not doing it. With a small smile he settled down to work.

The door to the King's office was closed, Sirius stared at it and wondered what would happen if he were to knock. He didn't think he would be well received but he was rapidly running out of ideas as to how to get the King to take notice of him. He could hear his mother's whispers, whispers of hatred, betrayal and darkness. With a shaky breath he turned away from the door, he would try again somewhere else, when he had a better plan. Before he got more than a few feet he heard footsteps, they were drawing closer rapidly and he had nowhere to hide. He bit his lip and waited nervously as a figure rounded the corner. His hand slipped into his pocket where his wand was along with a serpent handled knife, one his mother had given him that very morning.

"Oh my!" Sirius froze and his hand closed reflexively on the handle of the knife, he bowed low as the Queen stopped before him. Dorea Potter smiled graciously. "Young Lord Black, isn't it?"

"Please, it's Sirius, your grace."

Her smile widened. "Very well then, Sirius, are you lost?"

"I am." Sirius leapt on the excuse and smiled guiltily. "I was exploring your magnificent castle and must have taken a wrong turning at some point."

The Queen laughed brightly. "Of course, it's easily done. The castle isn't large but it can be confusing at times. This corridor is part of the King's private quarters, if you go back down this corridor and follow the stairs leading down it will take you to the guest quarters."

"Thank you, your majesty." He smiled and bowed low again before taking a few tentative steps away.

"Ah, Sirius?"

"Yes?" Sirius turned back to see her looking at him intently.

"You're very close to James, aren't you?"

He felt a chill down his spine but managed to arrange his features into something he hoped would be appropriate. "Yes, the prince and I have spent some time together during my stay."

"Good. He has very few friends within these walls and sometimes I worry that he will become isolated, it's very hard for him to keep friendships because of his rank…I do hope you two become close."

Sirius' smile relaxed somewhat. "Of course, he's a good guy." He said with meaning.

Dorea's smile widened and a fierce pride entered her eyes. "He is." She said with certainty. Sirius felt a flash of jealousy, he had never been praised like that, he had never heard his mother speak of him with any kind of pride or joy. His heart ached a little but he pushed it aside, when he had done his job she would be proud of him, he knew it. "Very well then, I hope to see you at the feast tonight."

"I will be there." Sirius said and bowed low one last time before taking his leave. Dorea Potter watched him go with a small amount of grief in her eyes, she could see deep wells of pain and loneliness in the boy's eyes and it made her heart ache. He was well mannered and cultured but she had heard the rumours surrounding his disturbed family, the Black's were infamous, known for violence and a strain of insanity that made the other noble's wary of integrating with them. Sirius appeared to have escaped that madness, he appeared to be a well balanced young man on the surface at least but Dorea could sense an undercurrent of intense anger and a well of sadness that seeped through the cracks of his persona like a dark miasma. Somehow she knew that the more time Sirius spent with her son the more that sadness and anger would melt away, James had that affect on everyone. She smiled and turned to her husband's office door, she knocked and pushed it open.

Charlus looked up to see his wife enter, she smiled brightly and gently closed the door behind her. "Dorea." He said in greeting and stood politely as she took a seat on the opposite side of his huge oak desk.

"Do you know who I saw hanging around outside your office?" Dorea asked. "Young Sirius Black."

Cold washed through Charlus and he sat down suddenly, his face went pale and Dorea gazed at him in concern. "Well…that is odd…why…why was he there?" He stroked his beard to cover his sudden nervousness.

"He said he had got lost while exploring. What on earth is the matter, you look as if you've seen a ghost?"

"Oh…oh it's nothing. I'm just tired from all this infernal paper work." Charlus smiled and saw his wife relax.

"I was wandering if it would be at all possible to have the boy stay here for a while?" The Queen asked, taking Charlus off guard.

"You-what?"

"Well, it's just that he's been getting along so well with James I had hoped to encourage that friendship."

"My Dear, that's a very nice thought but I very much doubt his mother would allow-"

"Come now Charlus." Dorea said sternly. "What kind of mother would deny her son the chance to spend more time at the side of a prince? He would grow up to become the champion of the next king, there is great honour in that for the boy and his family. James would be so happy."

Charlus knew that he would be placing himself and his family in grave danger if he agreed but at the look on his wife's face he was unable to deny her. "Yes, yes…if it will please James then I'll allow it." He said irritably with a wave of his hand.

XXX

At the feast James could hardly keep still, he had been told by his mother and father that Sirius would be allowed to stay in the castle with him as a royal companion and his excitement of the announcement was making him restless. He could see Sirius seated a little way down the table, he was talking softly to his brother who was picking absently at his food, Sirius picked up his goblet and sipped some wine before flicking his eyes towards James. At the same moment both boys grinned at each other, James admired the tiny blush that crept across Sirius' cheeks and the way he swept hair from his eyes in one elegant movement. James sighed happily and smiled to himself.

After the meal the King stood to make the announcement, the table fell quiet and all eyes fixed upon Charlus. "Tonight it is my great pleasure to make an offer to the Great and Noble House of Black." He began slowly, Sirius jerked his head and gazed at the King in open surprise while Walburga narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "I have witnessed the fact that our sons both have become close friends, I am sure that Walburga and Orion have seen it too. After much discussion with my wife and son I have decided to offer Sirius a place within the castle, he would become the prince's companion and grow and learn at his side, if you would allow it."

Sirius gaped for a full minute before turning to look at his mother's reaction, she smiled coldly and stood before easily dropping into an elegant curtsy. "My son would be proud to serve the future King, your grace."

"I am glad." Charlus gave a strained smile and the guests broke into exuberant applause. Sirius sat in numb silence as everyone sat again and he found himself staring at a grinning James, but somehow he found little about the situation that amused him. He was to become a political prisoner of sorts, and with the pressure of his Mother's will upon him there would be no escaping the dark destiny she had laid at his feet. Soon he would murder the King and James would have to die too. The thought made bile rise in his throat, he tore his eyes away from the head of the table and stared into the purple depths of his elf-made wine. His chest burned and a heavy weight sat there as if he had been filled with lead. His life was never his to control but some distant part of him had hoped deep down that he would escape his mother's plans and avoid having to commit murder, now he felt the chains of his birth grow tight around him and he knew there was no escape.

"Do you understand the opportunity you have been given, child?" Walburga began almost as soon as they were back in their apartments.

"Yes mother…I see it, I understand." Sirius replied, his tone one of boredom. He walked over to the windows and stared out into utter darkness, occasionally he caught the flicker of orange from someone's torch but that was infrequent as the castle settled down to sleep. His finger tips touched the glass and absorbed the chill from the window.

"This is the moment we have been waiting for, the King will see what an excellent companion you will be for his son and you can lull them all into a false sense of security before ending their lives!" Walburga was ecstatic, she oozed energy in a way Sirius had never seen before as she paced the small room rapidly. "The only question is will you be able to do it?" She paused and watched him carefully, slowly he turned and their eyes met. Sirius gazed at her in silence for a long time, he could see all the times she had simply stood by and watched as he was beaten by Orion. He remembered the times she had ignored his cries as he had nightmares, the times she had refused to feed him because he had done something wrong. Would she be able to love him if he did kill the king? Would she finally look at him with eyes that were warm instead of cold and distant? What would she do if he failed her? He shuddered and felt a chill deep in his bones, he forced his eyes away and closed his own. "I will do it." He said softly.

"Such a dear boy." Walburga said and touched his hair gently, he felt sickened by the touch but allowed it. "You will make me proud, child."

XXX

"These will be your new apartments." The Queen said as she gestured, Sirius peered around her and saw a large room with a massive four poster bed. There was a window that led out onto a balcony with views of the surrounding hills. Candle light flickered from the sconces bolted to the walls giving the whole room a homely feel.

"Thank you, they're lovely." He said quietly as the Queen ushered him inside.

"This door here leads to your personal bathroom and this other one is a direct link to my son's room next door."

Sirius' gaze flickered to the queens but he saw no sign of any ulterior motive. "What of my things?" He asked, attempting to change the subject.

"What clothes and other objects you brought with you will be sent here directly, anything else will be sent here by your mother when they return to their holdings."

Sirius nodded and moved across the room to the bedside table, a jug of water was there beside a bunch of fresh white flowers, absently he stroked their soft petals. "Thank you again, your majesty…" He said softly and gave her his best smile, she returned it and began backing out the room.

"It was my pleasure, Sirius. I'm sure James will be along any moment to make sure you are comfortable; he's been dying to speak to you ever since the announcement. I will see you at breakfast." She left him alone and finally Sirius sat down on the silken sheets of his new bed.

He stared around his new rooms absently as conflicted emotions made war in his heart, he was now trapped with no way out. His mother would never accept any excuses. He sighed heavily and closed his eyes, he wished his life was different, he wished he could allow his burgeoning feelings for James to blossom into whatever they were going to be. He wished, with all his heart, that he could escape and save James' life. It was childish and useless to want such impossible things but he couldn't help it. A knock at his door made his eyes open, he watched as it flew open so the heavy oak slammed loudly into the stone wall. James burst in with a grin that made all other light seem dark. James leapt at the bed, landing on it with his knees, he took hold of Sirius' hands in his own and held on tightly.

"This is the best thing that could have happened." He said breathlessly, his smile widened to impossible proportions and he missed the darkness in Sirius' own eyes. "I've always wanted a companion but I never found anyone who was really that appropriate, now though we can be together forever! Isn't this great?"

James' excitement was infectious; Sirius' lips curled into a soft smile as he leaned close to James and pressed their foreheads together. "Yeah. It's great." He said quietly, his fingers entwining with James'. "James…I…I have a confession to make…" His voice dropped to a whisper and he closed his eyes, terrified of looking into that bright hazel in case the anger that was sure to come shattered his heart.

"Ok." James replied, a small frown on his face that suggested confusion.

"Well…I…" Sirius stuttered, stalled and finally fell silent. His fingers tightened their grip on the princes before he took a deep, shaking breath and opened his eyes. He smiled, a slightly vulnerable, hurt expression, before pushing his other hand deep into James' untidy hair. "Never mind, it can wait." Without another word he pulled a protesting James to his lips and kissed him fiercely.

Excitement exploded inside James' chest, he smiled into the kiss and deepened it without a second thought. He was curious as to what Sirius had been about to say but he was much more interested in kissing, he wanted to do nothing but kiss. It felt so right and so perfect he had no idea how he had managed to live before he had met Sirius. He was slowly becoming more proficient in the act the more often he did it, he no longer needed to think about it and now could relax and enjoy the purity. He felt Sirius' fingers tugging lightly at his hair, he put a hand on Sirius' hip and drew him closer with a newfound confidence he had lacked. Through their prolonged physical attachment James felt something nag at the back of his mind, even as he pushed Sirius deep into the feathered mattress of the bed, he wondered just what Sirius had been about to say. Something dark and worrying crept into his busy mind, his kiss faltered for a brief second as doubt began to nibble at him like a mouse at some cheese. Had there been something in Sirius' eyes? Had he imagined the dethatched coolness in his face? Was there something really important that James was missing in his naiveté and lack of experience in relationships? He pushed his tongue between Sirius' lips and moaned as all doubts were wiped away. He would worry later. After all, they had the rest of their lives together, didn't they?