Chapter Eleven
Sirius Black was one good kisser, thought Victoria happily.
His strong arms were wrapped tightly around her, one at her waist, and the other resting at the back of her neck. Her own hands were on the top of Sirius' chest, just below his shoulders, and she could feel smooth skin and taunt muscle underneath the fabric of his t-shirt. Victoria moved her right hand, and ran it through his thick, dark hair. Sirius seemed to enjoy this, or at least the low groan he made in the back of his throat implied that he did.
When they finally detangled themselves from each other, they were both breathless and grinning.
'I've wanted to do that for so long,' muttered Sirius, pressing his forehead against hers.
'Tell me about it,' agreed Victoria, gently kissing his lips once more.
Sirius chuckled and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close.
'So when exactly did you realise just how sexy and irresistible I am?' he asked, one eyebrow raised in a challenging way.
'Well, I have always been attracted to your modesty,' laughed Victoria. 'But I suppose I started to like you in that way this term.'
Sirius pulled a face. 'Only since the start of term?'
'Yeah,' said Victoria in surprise, 'Why? How long have you liked me for?'
For the first time since she'd known him, Sirius looked mildly embarrassed. In fact, Victoria was sure that his ears had turned slightly pink.
He took a deep breath and pulled a sheepish expression. 'I don't know really, it's hard to say. I suppose I've always seen you as something more than my best mate's sister. It's just taken me a while to realise it, and even longer to act on it. I've had all these girlfriends, but none of them meant anything, and I think that was because they just weren't you, Vic. I told myself that I'd say something to you at the start of this term, but then you had that thing with Alex. Then once you'd broken up I just didn't know if it was too soon, if it'd cause problems. It's been hell, being around you but not being able to be with you. All I want to do is wrap my arms around you and kiss you.'
Victoria was quiet for a very long time once Sirius had finished talking.
'Erm, Vic?' he asked nervously, 'Sorry, I didn't mean for that to sound quite so intense. I-'
'Shut up, Sirius,' muttered Victoria, pressing a finger against his lips. 'That was, without a doubt, the most romantic thing that anyone has ever said to me.'
Sirius broke into an enormous grin, and pulled her even closer to him. They kissed again. It was gentle this time, and hesitant, but still the most passionate experience of Victoria's life so far.
'Go out with me?' whispered Sirius, once their kisses slowed down.
'Of course,' smiled Victoria, her voice just as quiet.
They kissed again for a while, their bodies seemingly in perfect synchronisation. Victoria would have been quite happy to continue doing this all afternoon, but a sudden thought made her pull away.
'What is it?' asked Sirius.
'Well,' began Victoria, warily, 'It's just that I'm worried about telling people.'
'About us?' asked Sirius in confusion, 'Why?'
'Lucy's my best friend, and she liked you last year!'
Sirius pulled a face. 'That was just a little crush. Besides, she and Remus have that thing going on now.'
'And then there's Alex,' pressed Victoria, 'He and I were dating only a few weeks ago!'
'He knows you two weren't suited,' countered Sirius, 'He said so himself. These aren't reasons to keep things secret, Vic.'
'What about James?' asked Victoria triumphantly; she had saved her trump card until last.
'Fine, you've got me there,' sighed Sirius, 'I don't particularly fancy being murdered by your brother anytime soon.'
'It's not that I don't want people to know about us,' insisted Victoria, leaning towards him and taking his hands in hers, 'It's just that I think the idea of us being together could upset quite a few people.'
'So what are you thinking?' asked Sirius slowly, 'Because I don't want to be sneaking around for months.'
'It won't be for that long,' Victoria reassured him. 'Maybe we keep it quiet over the Christmas holidays, gauge everyone's reaction, and then come clean at the start of next term.'
Sirius sighed deeply, 'Fine. If you think that's best.'
'I wouldn't do this for anyone else, Potter,' he groaned, pulling her against him and pressing his lips to hers.
The following morning, the sixth year girls' dormitory experienced its usual mad panic, as Victoria, Pippa and Lucy rushed around trying to pack up all their belongings. Meanwhile, Georgina- who had had her own possessions all packed up five days previously- lounged on her bed and painted her fingernails.
'You could give us some help, Georgie,' pointed out Pippa, as she crawled under her bed to retrieve a lone sock that was making a bid for freedom.
'Oh no,' countered Georgina, 'I've been telling you lot to pack for a week now. It's your own faults that it's been left to the last minute again.'
'Alright, Miss Pious,' grumbled Victoria, as she stuffed her Quidditch robes into her already overflowing trunk.
Truth be told, Victoria was quite grateful that everyone was completely distracted by packing. If they'd all been sitting around talking, then she probably would have found it hard not to talk about Sirius, and she was still adamant that people shouldn't know about them just yet.
'Anyone know a good spell to close trunks?' asked Lucy, looking down at her own trunk, which had about five times too much stuff in it.
'Yep,' said Pippa, 'It's called getridofexcessclothes-ious.'
'Very helpful,' muttered Lucy sarcastically.
Lucy had been in a poor mood all morning and, indeed for most of the party last night. Victoria and Sirius had reluctantly parted so not to rouse suspicion, and had returned to the party to see their friends. Rather than spending the night laughing away with Remus as she had done the last time, Lucy had pouted away in the corner for a few hours before going to bed early. Victoria couldn't help but feel annoyed on her friend's behalf. No matter how many times Remus and the Marauders tried to brush it under the rug, Victoria knew that something strange was going on.
After much effort, Victoria, Lucy and Pippa finished their packing, and joined Georgina in taking their trunks down the staircase. They loaded them onto the trolleys that were waiting in the common room, and then made their way down to where the carriages were waiting to take them to Hogsmede station.
'I've never known a term go so quickly,' commented Georgina lightly, as the carriage which the four girls were sitting in began to move.
'Maybe that's because you've found the love of your life this time,' reasoned Pippa.
'Yes, maybe,' agreed Georgina, completely missing the sarcasm in Pippa's voice.
Victoria laughed, and expected Lucy to be doing the same. However, when she glanced over at her friend, she saw that she was merely staring out of the carriage window, completely oblivious to the other girls' conversation.
They reached the station and climbed onto the train. Even when they found a compartment, Lucy took a seat by the window and sat in silence. Victoria was just about to attempt to speak to her, when the compartment door slid open, and Sirius, Remus and Peter wandered inside.
'Alright everyone?' asked Sirius casually.
He took a seat next to Victoria and accidently-on-purpose brushed his knee against hers. Victoria grinned to herself and moved her hand up to push a strand of hair away from her face. As she did so, she touched Sirius' shoulder for a very brief moment.
'I'm fine, thanks Sirius,' she said, giving him an innocent smile. 'How about you? Hungover?'
'Yeah,' admitted Sirius, pulling a face.
'Poor you!' said Victoria sarcastically. She patted his knee sympathetically, for perhaps a bit longer than was necessary.
Sirius groaned quietly, and looked at her through the corner of his eyes. Victoria winked back at him.
The compartment door slid open again, and Ben and Alex entered.
'It's a bit full in here!' protested Pippa, as Ben squeezed himself in between her and Georgina with much difficulty. Alex, meanwhile, took the last scrap of seat between Peter and the door.
'Don't you two dare start kissing!' Pippa warned Ben and Georgina sternly. 'I'm way too close to you for comfort.'
Victoria, however, was distracted by Lucy. In the chaos of everyone squeezing into seats, Lucy had ended up sitting very close to Remus. He had attempted to start a conversation with her, but had been met with stony silence. Instead, Lucy was once again staring out of the window, oblivious to what was going on inside the compartment.
Victoria was just wondering whether she should ask Lucy to accompany her to the bathroom as a pretext for being able to talk to her friend, when the door once again opened.
'Oh dear God,' muttered Sirius, as James and Lily strolled in. 'There's no room! If anyone else comes in then Vic will have to sit on my lap!'
Butterflies shot through Victoria's stomach at his words. She shot him another grin that she hoped was subtle enough for no one to detect.
'We'll find space, Padfoot,' James reassured Sirius. Then he walked over to Peter and nudged him out of his seat with his foot.
'So I guess I'm sitting on the floor then,' huffed Peter, as James and Lily squeezed themselves into the space he'd previously been occupying.
'Take one for the team, Wormtail,' ordered James.
'I'm the only member of the team that ever seems to take one!' protested Peter.
'That's true,' agreed Remus, 'Remember the time when Peter got the blame for you two having-'
A sudden movement caused him to break off his speech. With great difficultly, Lucy extracted herself from the over-full seats and walked straight out of the compartment. As she went, she muttered 'bathroom.'
Victoria and Pippa exchanged a concerned look.
'Erm, I think I might go too,' said Victoria, pulling herself up from her seat and hurrying out of the compartment after her friend.
'Lucy!'
Lucy was about half way down the corridor when she stopped, and turned round to face Victoria.
'I was just going to the loo,' she said.
'Oh don't give me that,' said Victoria quickly, 'What's wrong? What on earth is going on with you and Remus?'
'Nothing,' muttered Lucy in a low voice, her blue eyes glinting with a kind of furious determination. 'Absolutely nothing is going on between us. He has a secret and doesn't trust me enough to share it.'
'But surely it's not that important?' asked Victoria.
Lucy shrugged. 'Who knows? Who knows what the hell his problem is. All I know is that I no longer care.'
'Really?' asked Victoria sceptically.
'Yes!' insisted Lucy, 'He's had his chance. We've hung out together all term. Next term I'm going back to the old Lucy.'
'The old Lucy?'
'Yes, the old Lucy. You know, loads of dates, hot guys, that kind of thing.' She flicked her blonde ringlets over her shoulder, as if to prove a point.
'Alright,' said Victoria, 'If that's what you really want to do, then obviously that's fine. However, I do think you should talk to Remus. You've been such good friends, you really should sort this out.'
Lucy shrugged again. 'That's up to him. I've already made all the effort that I'm prepared to make. It's up to him now.'
'I'd forgotten just how stubborn you are,' smiled Victoria.
'That's me,' grinned Lucy.
'Are you ready to head back to the compartment now that you've had your dramatic storm out?'
Lucy grimaced. 'Sure. Let's go.'
By the time they got back to the compartment, Frank and Alice had also joined the group. The sheer amount of people within the small space meant that Victoria and Lucy struggled to even get inside the compartment.
'This is getting ridiculous!' exclaimed Victoria, 'Why on earth didn't we just get two?'
'Come here, Lucy, you can sit on my knee,' laughed Pippa. She stopped laughing, however, when Lucy took her up on this offer.
'Bloody hell,' huffed Pippa jokingly, 'I think you need to lay off the turkey this Christmas.'
Lucy elbowed her in the chest by way of response.
'Do you want my seat, Vic?' offered Sirius.
'That's bloody chivalrous of you!' commented James in surprise, 'In fourth year you once made me sit on the floor for the entire train journey!'
Sirius ignored him and got up. Victoria smiled at him in thanks and took a seat. Meanwhile, Sirius sat down on the floor in front of her.
He turned his head back round to face her, 'Just to warn you, Vic. In exchange for my generosity, I will be using your legs as a head rest.'
Sirius leant back against her legs, and the feeling of it drove Victoria a little crazy. All she wanted to do was reach down and run her hands through his hair. Oh and then jump on him and kiss him senseless...
The train journey was fun, due to such a large group of them being together, but was also undeniably long. By the time they arrived at King's Cross, darkness had fallen, and it was all a little confusing unloading luggage and saying goodbyes with a lack of light.
'So I'll see you all next term!' exclaimed Lucy, hugging Victoria, Pippa and Georgina all at the same time.
'I can't believe you're dumping us in order to go on a jaunt to the south of France. How bloody selfish of you!' moaned Pippa sarcastically.
'But you two are still coming to mine after Christmas, right?' Georgina asked Victoria and Pippa.
'Definitely,' confirmed Victoria, 'the 28th, yeah?'
'Yes,' grinned Georgina, and she gave them all one final hug before disappearing off towards her parents.
James appeared at Victoria's side. 'Ready to go, Vic?'
'Yep. Help me with my trunk?'
James sighed dramatically and took hold off her trunk. Together, they made their way over to their parents.
The first thing Victoria noticed was just how haggard Catherine and Henry Potter looked. Their faces were both more lined than she remembered, and they were also a little pale, as if they weren't getting enough rest. Despite this, however, both of them broke into wide smiles at the sight of Victoria and James.
'Hello,' grinned their mum, hugging both of her children tightly.
'Good time?' asked their dad cheerfully.
'The best,' replied James, who would no doubt always remember this as The Term When He Finally Wore Down Lily Evans.
'Now, where is Sirius?' asked their mum, scanning the crowd.
'Right here,' grinned Sirius, appearing at Victoria's side, seemingly out of nowhere.
'Oh there you are,' said Catherine. 'So you're coming to ours for Christmas, yes?'
'Wouldn't miss it,' said Sirius, 'Especially since it's also Vic's birthday.'
'Is it?' asked James, a confused expression on his face.
'You make that joke every year,' sighed Victoria, 'And it has never once been funny.'
'We should get going,' said Henry, glancing down at his watch, 'The London rush hour traffic is going to be horrific.'
'Oh Dad! Don't tell me you've driven here?' complained James.
'Of course we have,' said Henry in surprise, 'James, I've told you this before. The more we integrate Muggle things into our lives, the more the wizarding world is likely to accept them.'
'Yeah I get that. But that means a couple of hours stuck in a car! We'd be home already if we just used Apparition!'
'Oh shush, James,' said Catherine, 'Anyway, Sirius, are you sure you'll be okay getting back to your flat?'
'You treat him more like a son than you do me!' complained James.
'That's because we like him better,' retorted Catherine.
'I'll be fine, thanks,' laughed Sirius. 'I'll see you on Christmas Day.'
He waved to Catherine and Henry, clapped James on the back, and hugged Victoria.
'I'll write to you once I'm home,' he whispered in her ear, just before they broke apart.
Victoria watched him walk away through the crowd, a slightly sad feeling washing over her. Maybe she'd been wrong to suggest they keep their relationship a secret. If she hadn't had said that, then they could have told her parents today, and they could have happily kissed goodbye.
'Okay, let's go then,' said Henry, clapping his hands together, and relieving James of Victoria's trunk.
The family walked through King's Cross station together, attracting a few glances from Muggles due to the fact that both Victoria and James were carrying owls with them. The car was parked a couple of streets away. Despite James' protests, Victoria actually quite liked the BMW that her Dad had purchased a couple of years previously. It was roomy inside (due to magical enhancements, of course), and Victoria quite enjoyed the feeling of being driven around.
A couple of hours later, the car pulled up outside their house. Victoria's family lived in a large country house, set just a little way out of a small village. It was in the middle of nowhere, and a lot of people would have found the place boring, but Victoria loved it. The gardens were both large and sheltered enough to play Quidditch in, the kitchen featured an enormous wooden table where Victoria had spent many an hour chatting away with her mum, and there was a quaint little Muggle pub only a few minutes' walk away (admittedly her parents didn't know about the latter.)
'Is it nice to be home?' Victoria's Mum asked her, as they strolled down the little path towards the front door.
'Definitely,' answered Victoria truthfully.
In no time at all Christmas Day came around. Victoria woke on Christmas morning to find a white view from her window- the entire landscape had been coated in a thick layer of snow. She grinned to herself, and sat on the sill of her bay window for a while, looking out at how pretty everything was. It was during moments like this that it was possible to forget that there was a war on.
The sound of the doorbell interrupted her musings.
'Bloody hell he's early!' yawned James, as he dashed past Victoria's door, on his way downstairs to let Sirius in.
Victoria's stomach did some kind of acrobatic leap, and she grinned to herself.
Damn, she was still in her pyjamas. That wouldn't do. Channelling her inner Georgina, Victoria quickly changed into a red dress that she'd been saving for Christmas Day. She curled the front strands of her hair with her wand, and swept a minimal amount of make-up across her face. She was rather pleased with the end result when she looked in the mirror.
Once she was satisfied with her appearance, Victoria wandered downstairs into the kitchen. Her parents were both dressed, and were handing out glasses of champagne to Sirius and James, the latter of whom was still in his pyjamas.
Sirius, on the other hand, was dressed in dark jeans and a button down shirt that unfairly highlighted his muscular chest. The mere sight of him caused Victoria to catch her breath.
'Merry Christmas!' she called to everyone, to announce her presence.
'Blimey, Vic, you're making me look like a slob,' complained James, taking in her attire, 'Happy birthday, by the way.'
'Merry Christmas, and happy birthday, darling,' smiled Catherine, kissing her daughter on the check. Victoria's Dad did the same.
Victoria, however, was focused on Sirius. He was watching her, watching her as if he never wanted to take his eyes off of her.
'Merry Christmas, Sirius,' she said quietly. Luckily, her parents and James were chatting away, and weren't paying attention.
'Merry Christmas,' he repeated, 'And happy birthday.'
He crossed the space between them and kissed her lightly on the cheek. Even this lightest touch sent a shiver running all the way down Victoria's spine. Did everyone feel like this when they started a new relationship? Or was it just her and Sirius? Victoria had only ever had casual flings before- perhaps not including Alex- and she'd never experienced feelings like this.
They were interrupted by Henry Potter clearing his throat and raising his champagne glass.
'Merry Christmas, everyone,' he said smiling around at them all, 'and happy birthday, Vic. Let's have a wonderful day.'
Everyone lifted their own glasses, clinked them together, and took a sip. The champagne immediately warmed Victoria up.
Maybe she should exercise a little caution, she thought, as she had another taste. A few more glasses and she'd probably jump Sirius in front of everyone.
After they'd all drank their champagne, and been plied with more by Henry- who was force-filling everyone's glass- the five of them moved into the sitting room. A large, green tree stood in the corner of the room, underneath which sat countless presents. The little girl inside Victoria gasped with delight at the sight of them.
Victoria was very pleased with her haul. The brand new Cleansweep model from her parents, a copy of Quidditch Through The Ages from James, jewellery from various family members, and luxury chocolates from her friends. Sirius gave her a large box of Chocolate Frogs, and Victoria pretended to be delighted with them. In reality, she and Sirius had already agreed to exchange their real presents in private, so not to arouse suspicion.
The rest of the day passed by in a perfect haze. With significant help from their house elf, Catherine produced a delicious turkey dinner that left everyone rubbing their stomachs, after having eaten twice their own body weight in food. After dinner, James (who had drunk a little too much mulled wine) bored everyone to death by talking about his top ten favourite things about Lily Evans; he only shut up when Sirius threw a mince pie at him.
Just before midnight, everyone decided that after a day of food, drink and presents, it was time to call it a night. Victoria was more than a little disappointed that she hadn't had the chance to spend some time with Sirius alone, but there wasn't much she could do in front of everyone. Therefore, she contented herself with the sight of Sirius retreating into the spare bedroom, before going into her own room.
Feeling very sleepy all of a sudden, she pulled on her pyjamas and climbed into bed. It had just started snowing outside again, as if cementing a great day.
Victoria had been rolling around in bed for perhaps half an hour, attempting to fall asleep, when her door was quietly pushed open.
'Vic?'
'Sirius?'
'Well who else did you expect?' he chuckled.
In the darkness, Victoria could only make out the vague outline of his shape. But she could see enough to realise that he was moving towards her.
'Budge up,' he instructed, once he was standing by her bed.
Hardly daring to breath, Victoria moved over, and watched as Sirius climbed into bed with her. He wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her close to him underneath the duvet. It was simultaneously the sexiest and most comforting moment of her life.
'What are you doing here?' she whispered, conscious of the fact that James was only a short way away across the landing.
'I wanted to say happy birthday and merry Christmas properly,' he replied, kissing her gently.
Victoria smiled against his lips, and then pulled away.
'I have your present,' she said, 'Your proper present. Not a box of Bertie Botts' Every Flavour Beans.'
'Well it'll have to be good to beat them,' chuckled Sirius, 'Actually, I have your real present too.'
He produced a think, rectangular package seemingly from nowhere, just as Victoria handed him a present of a similar size and shape.
'Lumos,' muttered Sirius, and a dim, white light lit up Victoria's bed.
'Hey!' she protested, 'It's my seventeenth today! I should be doing that!'
'If it takes you that long to remember that you're of age, then no, you really shouldn't be,' laughed Sirius gently.
'Oh shut up!' muttered Victoria.
The sudden light had served to completely distract her. She could now clearly see that Sirius was lying in her bed. Sirius Black was in her bed. God, about ninety percent of the female population of Hogwarts would kill to be in her position right now. Plus, he did look particularly delectable tonight.
'Shall we open them on three?' suggested Victoria.
'Alright. One, two, three.'
Victoria tore the wrapping paper off her gift and gasped aloud. Sirius had given her a photograph inside a beautiful silver frame. It was of him and her, the day that they had won the Quidditch Cup the previous year. She remembered the photo being taken, as well as the feelings that she'd experienced. Her and Sirius were jumping up and down, hugging each other as though they had no care in the world. It was perfect.
'I guess great minds think alike,' laughed Sirius, holding up the present that Victoria had given him.
'I guess so,' giggled Victoria.
She had indeed given Sirius the exact same framed photograph. She had spent ages searching for the perfect present, before deciding that something simple and meaningful was likely to impress him more than anything expensive. Plus, she had always loved that photograph.
Sirius gently prised the frame from Victoria's hand, and placed it on the floor with his own. Then he pulled her even closer to him- so close that Victoria could barely breath.
'Happy birthday, Vic.'
'Merry Christmas, Sirius,' she breathed.
And with that, they pressed their lips against each other's, and collapsed into the feelings and sensations that only come with a new, teenage relationship.
Wow. Three updates in less than a week! I'm quite pleased with myself! I have to admit, what spurred me on was the lovely reviews that I have been receiving recently. I appreciate them so much, so please keep them coming. If you have comment- good or bad!- then just let me know.
I hope you enjoyed the chapter, even if it was a little fluffy! I can promise that in the next chapter people will find out about Vic and Sirius' relationship.
Until next time... x
