"Which do you like better?" Hayden asked, holding up an outfit in each hand.
Ember looked up sleepily, "Where'd you get those?"
Hayden flushed, "They're Caitlin's, but seriously, which one looks better?"
"Neither look much like you," Ember growled and Hayden threw her a look, "Alright already, I'd go with the red top and the jeans…"
"Thanks," Hayden quickly slipped into the clothes, "What was that hair spell that Caitlin taught me…" She muttered, "Oh yes," She held her wand towards her hair, "Simspera…" Hayden's hair went silkily straight, with her soft bangs off to the side. "And the makeup…" Hayden swiftly put on a light shade of makeup.
Ember, now wide-awake, casually asked, "Who's all the fuss for?" Hayden looked at the cat questioningly while humming a soft tune, "Why are you getting all dressy?" Ember asked again.
"Dressy? Do I look too dressy?" Hayden asked worriedly.
Ember sighed, "No, you look like most girls do these days." Hayden smiled happily, as Ember stretched lazily, "But why are you spending so much time getting ready?"
"Oh, I'm not really," Hayden looked in the mirror again, "But Andrew likes it when I make an attempt to look like most other girls and it's really not too much of a hassle…"
"You do realize that you've missed breakfast," Ember snarled angrily, "And that you're going to be late for Transfiguration if you don't get a move on."
"Oh gosh," Hayden said absently looking at her watch, "I'll see you later, Ember!" And without waiting for a response she ran out the door.
"Bye," Ember muttered glumly, "And tell Andrew that if he doesn't like how you look just to go ahead and break up with you. I wouldn't mind at all…"
Hayden rushed to her seat next to Sirius just as the bell rang to signal the start of Transfiguration. Breathlessly, she waved to Lily and Caitlin.
"Somebody cut it a little close this morning," Sirius attempted a smile, but there was an odd sort of look on his face, "I didn't see you at breakfast…"
"Oh, that's because I missed it," Hayden replied with a wave at her hand, "But I wasn't too hungry anyway."
"Hmm," Sirius grinned wickedly, "Then I guess that I'll just go ahead and eat these pieces of cinnamon toast that I nicked for you…"
Hayden laughed and took the toast gratefully, "Cinnamon toast is my favorite! What would I do without you, Sirius?"
"I don't know," Sirius shrugged, "But you'd probablylive a miserable life without laughter and missing breakfast," Hayden stifled her giggles as McGonagall made a face at the two.
"Mr. Black?" She asked in her strict voice, "Is there something you'd like to share with the class?"
"Actually yes, Min-Min, I would enjoy sharing with the class," Sirius stood on his desk and threw his arms out to the class, "This lovely little lady here beside me and I were just discussing how terrible life would be without, well, me being in it!"
"I imagine that life without you, Mr. Black, would mean quite a few less headaches for me," McGonagall said with a stern eye.
"Think of quidditch, Min-Min," James yelled from the back of the room, "We'd be having that third year Hufflepuff playing a beater spot instead of Sirius. It'd be a catastrophe!"
McGonagall actually smiled, "Well, I must admit that Black makes a ruddy good beater and just for that, I'm not going to dock any points for interrupting class," Many people cheering as Sirius took a bow and returned to his seat, "However," McGonagall turned back into her usual strict self, "That is quite enough goofing off from both of you boys."
Sirius turned in his chair and threw a note at Remus, who, for once, was not taking notes, but whispering to Caitlin. He read the note and blushed, before turning to Sirius and making a face at him. Sirius laughed softly before turning his attention back to Hayden.
"What's with the new style?" He whispered to her.
"Do I look bad?" Hayden asked worriedly, "Andrew really likes it when I take time to look nice and now I've completely ruined everything. I probably am the ugliest thing to walk the earth since—"
"Whoa Sheik, calm down," Sirius chuckled, "You're not the ugliest thing to walk the earth since Wormtail, far from it in my opinion. You look great don't get me wrong, but you don't look like my favorite girl. You're too beautiful to put all that makeup gunk on your face."
Hayden blushed slightly, "Sirius, you shouldn't joke around like that, if Andrew heard you…"
Sirius gasped, "But I'm not joking, Sheik, and I really don't give a damn if Andrew does hear me. He should learn that you are so much more beautiful than the other girls because you don't need to wear makeup and fix up your hair. You're perfect, just the way you are, from the way your eyes twinkle when you laugh to the small smile you try to hide when you're proud of something—"
"BLACK!" McGonagall screamed, "Incase you haven't noticed, we are trying to have a class here. And unless you can perform a perfect appearing spell, I will have to remove you from Miss Short." Sirius gave McGonagall a charming grin and after a small bow to the class, he flicked his wand and a bouquet of white roses appeared in his right hand. Charmingly, he gave the roses to Hayden and gave another bow. McGonagall looked furious, "All the same, Black, 20 points from Gryffindor. The rest of you, I expect an essay on appearing spells for next time. That will be all for today."
Sirius was flocked by the class before Hayden had another chance to talk to him. With a small smile, she gazed at the beautiful white roses. There was a slight jolt in her stomach as she thought about how beautiful Sirius said she was. Hayden quickly shook the thoughts of Sirius from her head with Andrew's smiling face guiltily running through her brain. A big smile returned to her face as she thought of how perfect she and Andrew were together. Nobody would break them up ever again. Without thinking, she tossed the roses into the trash on her way out the door.
James and Remus watched as a dejected Sirius grabbed the roses out of the trash. With a look of anger, he twisted the roses until all that was left was a pile of broken stems and loose petals.
James slowly snuck up behind Hayden and Lily as they walked down the corridor. Secretly, he covered Lily's eyes with his hands and whispered in her ear, "I was just wondering if a girl as beautiful as you are would consider going to the Christmas ball with me…"
Lily smiled and said flirtatiously, "Well, I don't think my boyfriend would like that too much, he's a bit of the jealous type. He'd probably have to hurt you."
"Sounds like a nice guy," James whispered sarcastically.
"He's only the most adorable guy around," Lily teased him, her eyes still covered.
James chuckled, "Well, If you won't go with me then, I guess I'll just have to ask this charming young lady next to you with the black hair…"
"JAMES!" Lily shrieked, pulling his hands off her eyes and turning to face him. James laughed and circled his arms around Lily's waist, pulling her towards him. Once their foreheads were touching, James threw Lily a charming grin and asked, "Do you, Lily Evans, take me, James Potter, to be your date to the Christmas Ball?"
"I do," Lily proclaimed before bursting into giggles. James kissed her sweetly on the forehead, before saying, "I've got to get to Muggle Studies, but I'll see you at dinner, Evans," James nodded to Hayden before heading down the corridor and out of sight.
Hayden felt an odd feeling in her stomach as she watched Lily gaze longingly after James. Hayden quickly brushed the feeling away by saying to Lily, "Seeing the two of you act like that together is slightly shocking."
Lily smiled, "Yeah, I still can't believe it. James is great, isn't he?"
"Yeah," Hayden replied, trying to ignore the fact that she, for some unknown reason, felt like crying, "James is a real sweetheart," she finally since, forcing a grin onto her face.
Lily stared at her friend in concern, "How's Andrew doing?" she asked, hoping to cheer Hayden up.
"He's great," Hayden mumbled, "Bloody great…"
"You two are such a cute couple," Lily said faking a cheery voice, "Andrew is so handsome and caring, charming, funny…"
A true grin came back to Hayden's face, "Yeah, and he's all mine," she said in contentment.
In the common room that night, Hayden was curled up in an armchair reading, 'Quidditch through the Ages' for hundredth time. On the couch beside her, Caitlin and Remus sat together finishing their transfiguration homework. Sirius was absently stroking Ember in another armchair across from Hayden. For some odd reason, Hayden was having trouble concentrating on her book as she listened to Caitlin and Remus flirt back and forth, both obviously smitten with each other. The same feeling that she'd had when hanging around James and Lily was starting to clench in her stomach again.
"I'm going to bed," Hayden announced finally.
"It's only eight o'clock," Caitlin said concernedly, "Are you feeling alright?"
"Fine," Hayden snapped, then in a kinder voice she added, "I'm just tired from quidditch and classes I suppose. I'll see you in the dorm…" Hayden walked to the staircase, purposely choosing to ignore the concerned glances of her friends.
"Hayden," Sirius called to her, and Hayden turned to meet his bright blue eyes, "You've forgotten your book," He said after a small silence. Hayden thanked him, and took the book back, trying to avoid the odd look Sirius had in his eyes.
"I'll see you in the morning," Hayden mumbled and hurried up the staircase.
Sirius returned to Remus and Caitlin, both who asked him eagerly if he knew what was wrong with Hayden. Sirius shook his head no and went back to petting Ember.
"Erm—Caitlin?" Remus asked, blushing furiously "Would you, um…like to go to the ball with me?" Sirius tried not to laugh at his friend and he quickly turned his snigger into a coughing attack. Quickly, he motioned that he was going to get a drink, leaving the couple alone
Caitlin laughed, "Of course I'll go to the ball with you, Remus," She ruffled his hair, "I wouldn't rather go with anyone else."
"You—You wouldn't?" Remus asked, wishing he could be manlier about this whole thing and that his cheeks would return to their normal color.
"No, silly," Caitlin flashed her beautiful smile, "I'm your girlfriend because I like you…"
Remus wished that she didn't have to be so beautiful, it was making him even more nervous, "Right…" he laughed softly, "I'm not very good at this," he motioned to the two of them, "Am I?" he asked.
"I think you're very handsome and charming," Caitlin said, squeezing his hand, "And funny and too smart for your own good," She smiled at him again, and before Remus knew it, she had kissed him sweetly on the lips. Remus' head was swimming even though the kiss hadn't been long or passionate, he knew that it meant the beautiful girl next to him liked him for being him. Caitlin laughed at Remus' expression and said, "We should probably finish our homework now, I don't think McGonagall would be too happy if we didn't get it done."
"Right," Remus said blushing, "So, umm…back to appearing spells…"
"What was that all about?" Ember asked Hayden as the cat walked into the dormitory.
"What?" Hayden said innocently, "I'm very tired," and she gave a huge yawn for the effect.
"Liar," the cat accused her as she settled onto Hayden's bed, "You've been acting like this ever since Lily and James got together. Aren't' you happy for them?"
"Yes," Hayden said quickly, "I think it's wonderful…"
"But?" Ember prompted her.
"But nothing," Hayden said rolling over on the bed, "I'm very happy for them and Remus and Caitlin. Now, I'm going to bed whether you like it or not."
"No need to be grumpy about it, I was only trying to help," Ember said before jumping off the bed and making her way to the door, "It's not my fault that you're jealous that all of your friends are learning what it's like to fall in love and you're getting left out…" and with that, Ember hurried out the door.
James watched as his best friend casually played with his unfinished plate of food. Sirius wore a grim look instead of his usual wide smile. Occasionally, his eyes would travel over to the spot where Hayden was chatting animatedly to Andrew. But mostly, Sirius' eyes remained on his food, not saying a word to his lunch companions.
"James," Lily beckoned to him, "We've got to meet with McGonagall in fifteen minutes to discuss the ball."
"Right," James smiled towards her, "I'll see you later mate." Sirius gave a small wave as James walked away with Lily. James looked back one last time to see a flirty girl taking the seat next to Sirius.
"Sirius," a brunette took a seat next to Sirius, "I have just come to realize that you, the most eligible bachelor at Hogwarts, haven't been dating too much this year. And at first I was like, why? And then, I like, realized that you've been waiting for me this whole time! I see the way you look at me when I walk by in the hallways and I know you want me," The girl smiled seductively at an appalled Sirius Black. She giggled and pulled Sirius closer by the belt loop on his pants, "Don't be shy, Siri…"
"Erm—I don't even know your name," Sirius said kindly as possible.
"It's ok," The girl threw herself into his lap, and whispered into his ear, "I just knew it was love at first sight. You can call me Holly."
Before Sirius knew what he was doing, his arms were wrapped around the girls' waist, "I love the name Holly," he purred in her ear. The sensible part of him was screaming, 'what are you doing?' while the old Sirius was telling him, 'who cares about impressing Hayden. She's too wrapped up in Andrew to notice.'
"BLACK!" McGonagall screamed, "Come with me!" Sirius blinked, as if coming out of a funk and stared at his professor in amazement, "NOW!" McGonagall yelled when Sirius didn't move. Holly swung off Sirius' lap and stalked away in the other direction as Sirius slowly made his way to his feet. He looked around the Great Hall to see many guys sniggering and girls giggling, but his eyes fell upon two people only. Remus was looking at him, a disappointed frown played across his face. And Hayden started at him, her eyes full of misunderstanding and sadness.
"I—I'm sorry…" Sirius muttered to Remus, then to Hayden he whispered, "I'm so sorry, Sheik, I didn't mean to hurt you…" but Hayden never heard him over the applause by many of the male figures in the room. McGonagall practically drug Sirius out of the Great Hall, a most displeased look on her face. The professor didn't stop until she reached her office where she threw Sirius into a chair and locked the door.
"Mr. Black, I don't know why you felt compelled to give us all such a display of affection, but I assure you—"
"I didn't mean to," Sirius muttered, "I'm sorry."
"Speak up Black!" McGonagall barked, believing she'd heard him incorrectly.
"I'm sorry, professor," Sirius was beet red with shame, "Holly just threw herself into my lap and I…" His eyes looked far away.
"Go on, Black," McGonagall prompted him, most keen on what he was saying.
"I acted like a jerk," Sirius said with a look of realization on his face, "I wasn't thinking straight."
"That was obvious."
Sirius shook his head in disbelief, "It was like I went into autopilot of the old Sirius Black and threw away everything I've changed about myself."
McGonagall looked at the boy with pity, "Some things can never be changed, Black-"
"So you're saying I'm going to be a player for the rest of my life?" Sirius yelled his voice thick with emotion.
"No, I don't believe you will be a player in life," McGonagall patted his shoulder consolingly, "I think that you have the intelligence to be anyone you want to be, Sirius."
"You do? Ma'am," Sirius hastily added.
"Yes, Sirius, you're one of the most intelligent students I've ever had," McGonagall smiled, "You don't always use your smarts the way you should, but you have the potential to be a very respectable gentleman someday."
"I will be, ma'am," Sirius vowed, "Someday…I won't let everything I've learned go to waste like the rest of my family," his voice sounded bitter.
"I never thought you would," McGonagall hesitated before adding, "And you will always be a part of our family here at Hogwarts. If you ever need anything, Sirius, I will be more than happy to help such a respectable gentleman as yourself."
Sirius felt an unexpected lump rise in his throat. It was the highest praise McGonagall had every given him. "Thank you, Ma'am. I should probably be going so I'm not late to Muggle Studies."
"Off with you then Black," McGonagall returned to her brisk self, but after Sirius left the room, she wiped away a tear of pity and pride for the boy who had given up everything to become the man he was now.
Sirius didn't return to Muggle Studies as he had planned, but instead he took off for the common room. Making sure that no one was about, he sneaked into the girls' dormitory (James had figured out how to get past the slide years ago, but they'd never actually been into the girls' rooms). Sirius admired the cleanliness of the room, before getting to work.
Hayden tried to listen as Lily told her about the meeting with McGonagall, but Hayden's mind kept straying away to what had happened at lunch. She thought Sirius had given up being a player and started to grow up a bit. She'd obviously thought wrong. Hayden didn't quite understand why the situation had upset her so much, but it had upset her a great deal. Was Sirius Black really just a player? Or did he have a heart? And why in the name of Merlin did Hayden suddenly care about Sirius?
"Earth to Hayden?" Lily waved her quill in Hayden's face, "Are you listening?"
"Erm—of course," Hayden smiled cheerily, "I think James is right—"
Lily laughed, "I asked if you wanted to be my partner for our arithmancy work."
"Oh," Hayden flushed, she'd forgotten that they were even in class, "Of course I will, Lils."
"So I heard that Sirius and Holly were all over each other at lunch after James and I left," Lily said casually, but she paid close attention to Hayden's expression.
"Yeah, typical Sirius style," Hayden gave a fake laugh, "And typical kind of girl. It'll never last though, she'll be gone by next week. I really thought that Sirius had gotten out of the whole player funk, but he has the nerve to talk back to this girl! And she's there on his lap in front of the whole place, even the professors. I mean, really! What's he trying to prove?"
"Maybe he was feeling lonely," Lily suggested, trying not to laugh at the now fuming Hayden.
"Lonely? How could a guy that has a million girls hanging off him feel lonely?"
"Maybe he's waiting for a certain one," Lily suggested, "James said the Sirius had been acting weird lately. Asking what it feels like to be in love…"
"And I suppose James told him all about the two of you," Hayden snapped, "You and James perfect new couple, completely and madly in love with one another—"
"Calm down, Hay," Lily smiled, "James and I are happy, yes, but aren't you happy with Andrew?"
Hayden looked away from Lily, "Yeah, I am, of course, but…it's just…yes, I'm happy, I suppose," Hayden snapped back. The bell rang and Hayden immediately stormed out of the room, leaving Lily who wore a small smile on her face.
"Whoa, where's the fire, gorgeous?" James asked, as Hayden ran flat into him and went stumbling to the floor.
"Up your arse," Hayden muttered, as James offered her a hand up.
James laughed, "Are you always this nice or is this a special treatment?"
Hayden, despite herself, smiled grimly, "Sorry, I'm just distracted."
"Best get over it by Saturday, we've got a big match coming up," James frowned at her, "We can't afford to—"
"Lose, yes I know James," Hayden rolled her eyes.
"I just want to make sure you're focused on quidditch and nothing else."
"I'm always focused," Hayden retorted, "Don't worry about the team, Captain Potter. We're going to kill Beauxbatons on Saturday."
James looked at her closely, "I'm not worried about the team, Hay. I'm worried about you."
"You and everyone else in the world," Hayden murmured, "Why can't everyone just leave me alone?"
"Hayden," James' eyes were full of concern, "We're your friends. It's our job to worry about you. I know that there's a lot of pressure on you because we're playing Andrew in quidditch this weekend and everyone is wanting to know which one of you is better—"
"IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH QUIDDITCH, JAMES!" Hayden screamed, attracting stares from the other people walking in the corridor, "JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" And with that, Hayden ran past James and disappeared around the corner.
James stood in shock until Lily came running up to him, "James, have you seen Hayden? She was acting all funny in arithmancy and then she ran out of the class, not even waiting for me—" Lily noticed that James wasn't listening to a thing she was saying, "Um…James?"
"W—What? Oh, Lily," James shook his head, "Sorry, I was still trying to comprehend why Hayden screamed at me and took off running."
Lily sighed, "I think our little princess was upset with Sirius' show today at lunch."
"What? Why would Hayden be upset by Sirius flirting with another girl…" James' eyes dawned in realization, "Unless Hayden's got a little crush on Siri-poo."
Lily smiled dreamily, "You think she does? They would be perfect for one another…"
"Right," James clapped excitedly, "First, we have to alert Lupin of the plan, then, we have to make a plan to get them together, then, we carry out the plan and finally, they get together!"
"Sounds good," Lily checked her watch, "Right, you find Remus and meet me in the north tower in half an hour."
"Ok, and are you going to tell Caitlin? Because she could be necessary to the plan…"
Lily nodded, "I'll bring her to the tower. See you later!"
Sirius looked around the girls' dormitory and frowned. There was something missing, but he couldn't quite figure out what it was. Turning, he saw his reflection in the mirror and was startled as he realized what had to be done. With a heavy heart and a shaking hand, Sirius raised his wand to his head.
"Okay, now everyone knows why they're here, do we not?" James asked his friends.
"Of course!" Caitlin squealed, "I love matchmaking!"
Remus shook his head, "I still don't see how this is going to work. Sirius and Hayden would make a terrible couple. Neither one would admit that they like the other even if they were the last two people on earth. It's not logical…"
"Who cares about logic?" James rolled his eyes, "You've got to start living in the moment, Moony. Now then, since we're all in agreement, how should we get them together?"
Hayden stormed through the common room and straight up to the dormitory. Today was just not her day. Opening the door to her dormitory, she was startled to see the room stuffed with flowers, white roses to be exact. A huge sign that said, "I'm sorry!" hung over her bed along with a stuffed animal that looked slightly like an overgrown black dog.
"What the bloody hell?" Hayden muttered.
"This, um, is sort of an apology from me," a voice said from behind her. Hayden turned to see man she didn't recognize standing in the girls' dormitory. He was tall, lean, muscular, and deadly attractive.
"Who, uh, who are you?" Hayden asked, her voice catching in her throat. She raised her wand and asked, "And how the hell did you get in here?"
"You don't recognize me?" The man said in a familiar voice. He crossed the room in two strides and lowered her wand arm, not letting go of her wrist. "I did a stupid thing today, Sheik, and I would really like it if you forgave me just this once."
Hayden couldn't believe her eyes, "Sirius?" the man nodded and gave her an all too familiar grin. "Sirius, what did you do to yourself?"
"Um…I tried to clean myself up a little bit," Sirius said, his face turning red, "I thought it would prove to you that I'm growing up."
"You cut your hair," Hayden said in amazement.
"Yeah," Sirius touched his head longingly, "It was a pretty big deal for me."
"I can only imagine," Hayden said, feeling dizzy. Sirius had great pride in the sleek,adorably tousled,black hair that fell down past his ears. It gave him the dangerous rogue look that girls went wild for. Now, his hair was hardly an inch long and it was neatly combed to the side. He looked like he worked at the ministry or something, especially in the almost formal attire he was wearing.
"Sheik," Sirius gazed at Hayden, "Today at lunch, I was an idiot. That's not who I am anymore, I've changed. And, I just want you to forgive me and I want you to know that I'm not a player—"
"Sirius, what you do in your personal relationships is none of my business," Hayden refused to meet his eyes, "And you really have no need to apologize to me for what you did today, although I must admit I really thought that you'd grown up a bit."
"I have Sheik," Sirius grabbed her hands, "This is what all of this is for. To show you that I've grown up."
"You can't become a man by cutting your hair, Sirius," Hayden argued, pulling his hands from hers, "And you can't expect a bunch of roses to change what you did. Besides, you don't look like the Sirius Black I know, you look like a ministry official."
"I thought that's what you like though," Sirius argued, looking confused, "This is how Andrew looks everyday—"
"That's the person Andrew is. He's a respectable guy," Hayden sighed, "But, you, Sirius, you're not a…"
"I'm not a respectable guy?" Sirius asked her, his voice harsh.
"Sirius, you know what I mean," Hayden argued, "You shouldn't change yourself just to impress me…"
"But I want to impress you," Sirius pulled her close to him, "I will be whatever guy you want me to be."
"You can't change who you are," Hayden said breathlessly.
"I can try," Sirius argued softly and reached to touch Hayden's face.
Hayden shivered with the soft touch of Sirius' fingers, "I don't want you to change, Sirius. I like the not-so-respectable Sirius…"
"Then why not go to the Christmas Ball with me?" Sirius asked her.
Hayden for one fleeting moment wanted to shout that she would go with Sirius, but she was afraid. She'd had her heart broken before and she was too scared that it would happen again. "Because I'm in love with Andrew…" Hayden heard herself say.
"You don't love him," Sirius told her, "But you think he'll protect you. You're too scared to love someone like me who swears to never hurt you, but you love Andrew who already has hurt you. I don't understand…"
Hayden pulled herself out of his grasp, "You swear never to hurt me Sirius, but what am I supposed to do when you have another show like today?"
"I promised never to hurt you, Sheik," Sirius argued.
"You already have hurt me, Sirius," Hayden said softly, her eyes welling with tears. "We can be friends, but nothing more."
"What about if I change? Will you give me a chance then?" Sirius' voice was thick with emotion.
Hayden held up her left hand, a shimmering ring on her finger, "Andrew gave me a promise ring after class today. You don't get anymore chances…" Hayden turned away so she didn't have to see the hurt and confused expression on Sirius' face.
A/N: Wow, you know it's been a long time since you've updated when you can't remember your password! I know this chapter might be a little boring, but the ending was pretty cool I thought. Well let me know what you think, REVIEW! And if anyone would like to be a Beta for this story I'd appreciate it! Thanks a lot!