Chapter 24
He opened his eyes and stared down at me, the open affection on his face gave rise to a swelling feeling under my breast, and I pulled him down on top of me, holding him tightly to my chest. I let go of a shaky breath and then drew another.
"I love you." And I meant it. He froze, staring into my eyes and I thought for a second that he hadn't heard me. Then a smile began to spread across his face and he yelped, pulling me up into a kneeling position and laughing manically.
"I never. Ever. Ever. Thought I'd hear you say that!" He punctuated each word with a peck on the lips, still laughing happily. I smoothed out his hair and kissed his forehead.
"It's true, I only realised it now, but it's true, Sirius." He buried his face into my chest and I felt the rush of his breath over my skin.
"Can we stay here forever?"
"After Saturday, yes."
XXXXX
The night before the wedding, Sirius was removed from the Head Boy and Girl rooms back to Gryffindor tower. Sev had decided that there would be no 'funny business' before the ceremony. I smiled to myself during his rant, 'If only he knew'. In fact, I believe our night together the previous night was the only reason he didn't have to be marched out of the suite at wand point. He made a show of protesting, before winking at me when no one was watching and finally agreeing to return to his own dormitory for the night.
It was only the second night since the law was announced that I had slept alone. My bed that had been magically enlarged for the two of us now seemed too big, and I didn't sleep well. It must've shown on my face, Sev took one look at me when he entered the sitting room and plucked a Pepper Up from his bag, uncorking it and handing it too me. I downed it in one swallow and immediately felt better.
"Thanks," I said as I handed him back the empty vial.
"You don't have to do this you know," He said in gentle tones and I smiled at him.
"Just between you and me?" He nodded. "Firstly we both know I do, and secondly, even if I didn't I still would."
"Are you happy?" I nodded, smiling at him. "Good, that's all I want, Ashe."
"Thank you," I stepped up to him before he could duck out of it and wrapped my arms around his neck. He froze briefly, as he always does, and then relaxed into it.
"Now, it's usually the bridesmaid's job to help you dress and do your hair, however as you've seen fit to hand me your bouquet, I thought it might be overstepping my bounds." I chuckled at his words. "Therefore I have enlisted the help of one of the school elves, I believe you and Pippy are already familiar with each other?" There was a pop in the room and standing in front of me was Pippy, staring up at me with her ocean blue eyes.
"Hi, Pippy!" She smiled up at me when I greeted her.
"Hello, Miss! Pippy is happy to help with your bonding. Pippy is much excited for Miss." I smiled at her words.
"Thank you, Pippy; I'm glad you are here as well." I turned to Sev. "Will you be here while I dress?" He shook his head.
"I will be organising breakfast for you while Pippy helps you, then I will return to the dungeons to dress. Pippy will retrieve Reggie and I when the time comes to escort you to the lake." He exited the rooms with a final nod to me, and I was led back up the stairs to my room by Pippy to get ready for the day.
The Hand-fasting robe that I was to wear was simply a plain white gown. Long sleeved and flowing down to the floor, it had a square, mid cut neckline that rose up the shoulders and plunged in a V to the small of my back. The V-line of the dress was held together with seven white ribbons, the topmost one tying over my shoulder blades and the sleeves came to a point, each with a loop that fitted over my middle finger to hold them in place. After a quick, light meal delivered by Sev, I knelt on the floor of my room to allow Pippy to tie the ribbons behind my back. She then braided my hair, and interwoven with the braid was a green ribbon and a red ribbon, one for both of our houses. As Pippy tied off the braid, there was a knock on the door of the room. I stood from the floor and moved to the door to open it. Standing on the other side was the Headmaster.
"Headmaster!" I stepped back to allow him entry to the room. "Please come in."
"Thank you, Ashlee; you look lovely I must say. How do you feel about the hand-fasting, so close to the event?"
"I'm excited, and I know Sirius is as well."
"I'm pleased to hear that, and from what I have seen and heard around the castle the two of you are coming together rather well." I smiled and nodded. "Now, I must not linger, as I have duties to perform before the ceremony. I have something for you, Ashlee."
"Headmaster, you didn't have to..."
"Oh, I didn't." He reached into his robes and extracted a very small box, placing it on the desk in my room. Enlarging it, he unlatched the clasp and pushed the lid up. "This was made for you, many years ago, by one of the Black patriarchs, held in trust by each successive headmaster until such time as the Daughter of Ages presented herself at school. It is over two hundred and fifty years old." Out of the box he lifted a silver circlet, a four-loop Celtic knot at the front of it surrounding a very large, flat emerald. It was beautiful. Gently the Headmaster turned it around and lifted it, placing it on my brow. The weight of it settled onto my head, the cool of the metal soothing in its own way as the circlet re-sized itself to fit my brow. Involuntarily my fingers came up to touch the adornment, a smile spreading across my lips.
"It's lovely, thank you, Headmaster."
"I am merely passing on an heirloom that has been meant for you for nearly three centuries." He smiled at me again. "It does look fetching on you, Ashlee. Now I must take my leave of you and allow you to finish readying yourself. Enjoy this day, Ashlee, and may you look on it with joy in the future." I nodded my thanks to him and watched as he left my room. I turned to Pippy.
"How do I look, Pippy?" Her eyes took on a watery look as she gazed up at me.
"Miss is beautiful; Master Black is a very lucky man."
"No, I think I'm the lucky one." She nodded and disappeared with a pop. Barely a moment later, Sev and Reggie popped into my room, apparated in by Pippy, who then disappeared once more. Reggie looked me over and then smiled approvingly.
"You look amazing, Ashe." He breathed, and moved to me, wrapping me in a brotherly hug. As he pulled back he took a good look at the circlet on my head and a smirk crossed his face. "So I see they finally gave you a tiara?"
I huffed at him and shook my head, muttering "Idiot" under my breath. This only served to make him laugh and Sev swatted him away from me, holding his arm out for me to take.
"How do you feel about tonight?" He asked, his voice laden with concern as we walked through the corridors.
"Good," I said, smiling and nodding. A sex talk from Sev on the way to my wedding was not something I'd seen coming.
"Just relax and let it happen. I'm told it hurts the first time, I don't know I've never been with a virgin. If you need him to slow down, tell him. He should be taking care with you anyway. If you need it in the morning, I..."
"Sev, I'm sure I'll be fine. Stop worrying for me." I squeezed his arm a little. "I have a hunch that it will go rather smoothly."
"Yes well, your blind optimism will only ever get you so far..." He was cut off by the sound of Reggie snickering under his breath. "And just what do you think is so funny?"
"I think that what Ashe is trying to say, Sev, is that wearing white to her wedding might be a bit of lie." He threw his head back and laughed at the outraged look on Sev's face.
"I've been sleeping in a bed with him for the last three weeks; it was bound to happen sooner or later." He was clearly not happy, his mouth was set in a hard line and barely restraining his temper.
"When?"
"Right after the Draught of the Living Death."
"I would have thought that even Black could show some restraint." I stopped walking and turned to him.
"He did. It was my idea. I didn't want to lose my virginity because of a law. He was the one who wanted to wait till the wedding night, but he also said that it was my decision. I made the move that afternoon; don't take this out on him." He took a breath as we began walking again. "And for the record, he looked after me really well the next morning."
"Very well then, if you are certain." His focus remained straight ahead. "At least I no longer have to inform you of the ways of men." I turned my head sharply towards him to see a smirk slowly forming on his face.
"And what were you going to tell me, Sev? To lie back and think of England?" Reggie snickered again.
"Quite the opposite actually, I was going to tell you to give as good as you get and make sure you have fun as well." I grinned at him.
"Oh I did, you can be sure of that." We came to a stop and I could see that during our banter through the halls of the school we had walked all the way to the lake and were now standing in the location where I would wait to be called to the circle. Sev turned to the table that had been placed waiting for me and lifted the bouquet of blood red roses from it, placing them in my arms.
"We must leave you here now, Ashe. I'll be waiting in the circle for the two of you to arrive." I nodded and watched as the two boys left for the ceremony circle. I could see the small group of people gathered just down the hill. Once again the Headmaster stood with his back to the lake, and I noted that it was in almost the same position as the funeral Sirius, Remus and I held for the werewolf in third year. In the circle I could see my parents and brother, Remus, James and Lily, Pettigrew, Sev and Reggie and Ma and Pa P.
"Welcome to the sacred circle, where beginnings and endings are one and all things are eternal." I heard the Headmaster begin the ceremony in the distance. The nerves in my body rose, and my bare feet dug into the ground beneath me. "Would the Bride and Groom please present themselves to the circle." Taking the cue, I walked the short distance to the circle, passing through the gap that had been left for me between the Headmaster and Sev. Sirius also approached from the other side of the circle, passing through his own gap between James and the Headmaster. We met in the middle, in front of the Headmaster and I smiled as he winked at me.
"Would the Bride please state her name and her intentions today?"
"My name is Ashlee Towery and I am here to marry this man."
"Are you here of your own free will?"
"Yes." Sirius smiled at my response.
"Would the Groom please state his name and his intentions today?"
"My name is Sirius Black and I am here to marry this woman."
"Are you here of your own free will?"
"Yes." He winked at me again and I smiled, shaking my head slightly.
"You are required to wed under the law imposed by the Ministry of Magic as the both of you are over the age of seventeen and currently unmarried. That you have chosen each other and have come of your own free will is a blessing not afforded to many young people since the introduction of this law. You have come to us today as individuals to forge a new life in unity, and your friends and family are here to witness this union, to bestow their blessings and share in this joyful occasion. Who stands up for this woman?"
"I do." I heard the voice of Severus behind me and I turned to him, handing him the roses in my arms. Turning back to Sirius, I took his pro-offered hands, holding on as the ceremony continued.
"Who stands up for this man?"
"I do," said James and I watched as he stepped forward, laying a golden cord across our joined hands.
"In the course of the marriage proposal, you each made a promise to the other, to be fulfilled in the event that the marriage took place. Please restate your promises now. Sirius, you will begin."
"Ashe, I promise that I will fight for you. I will join you in the Order of the Phoenix to destroy He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named until such time as I am no longer needed. I will support you financially, morally, physically in whatever you choose to do in your life. I will join the Auror program at the Ministry and dedicate my life to ensuring you never have to fight again."
"Ashlee, please restate your promise to Sirius."
"I will support your desire to enforce magical law in any way I can. I will fight alongside you in the Order of the Phoenix and together we will be victorious."
"Have you each accepted the other's proposal?"
"We have." We responded together.
"Sirius, make your vow." The Headmaster reached out and took the two ends of the rope lying across our hands. He began to wind them around our hands as Sirius began to speak.
"Ashlee, you are a one in a million. I have loved you for a very long time, although it may not have been apparent, and standing here with you is a dream come true. We got off to a rocky start, but I promise you that I will be there until the end of our days. I will follow you into battle and fight for you with everything that I have and everything that I am. And I will love you until the end of time." I smiled to him, biting my lip.
"Ashlee, make your vow." The first knot in the rope was tied.
"Sirius, the last three weeks with you have been incredible. Learning the real you, it was impossible to not fall in love with you. You are more incredible and more amazing than you yourself know. Your support over the last year or so has been critical and I will be forever grateful for your friendship and your love. I will love you until the end of time." The last knot in the rope was tied as I finished speaking and the Headmaster drew his wand. A flash of light erupted from the cord, a golden light filled my eyes and I was blinded for a few moments, then it faded and the cord was gone.
"Your union has been accepted. You are now married." The Headmaster placed a hand on each of our shoulders and leant in. "Congratulations, Mr and Mrs Black. I do pray, however, that you discover there is more to your union than war." He twinkled over his glasses at us before straightening and addressing the rest of the group. "Now if the guests would kindly make their way to the marquee just up the hill, the hand-fasting feast may begin." Sirius took my hand and walked with me up the hill to the white tent.
"You look amazing, by the way." He whispered to me. "Where'd you get the circlet?"
"I'll tell you when we get back to our rooms." He nodded and looked around the group under the cover of the tent. "Remus is missing."
"He said he wasn't feeling the best." Pettigrew spoke from behind us and we turned. "Congratulations, Pads, Towery." I smiled a tight smile.
"Well, it's Black now."
"Of course it is." He scurried off towards the food table as Ma and Pa P approached us.
"Congratulations, my dear." She wrapped me up in an embrace. "You are now officially my honorary daughter. Now, don't be too nervous about tonight, alright? Sirius, you make sure you look after her."
"I will," He smirked sidelong at me and winked. The colour in my cheeks rose, and it seemed Ma P took it as a sign that we still hadn't done anything.
"Good boy," She said and embraced him as well. The feast moved along in a flurry of congratulations and well wishings. My parents came up after Ma and Pa P, and it seemed that Dad and Sirius had come to some kind of understanding, Dad greeting him with a handshake and Mum with a hug and a kiss. Sev and Reggie were next, Reggie going as far as to clap his brother on the back with a wink. The last to greet us were James and Lily, each receiving me with a hug before Sirius and I took our leave of the group. Taking my hand once again, he led me from the marquee to the castle and up through the corridors and stairs to our rooms. He pulled me through the door to the sitting room and stopped, wrapping his arms around me.
"So, now that there's no pressure, what do you want to do? We don't have to be anywhere for the next twenty four hours."
"We still have a consummation clause, Sirius." I leant in and brushed my lips against his. "And I intend to ensure that you are properly bedded in accordance with the law."
"Do you intend to take advantage of me?" He arranged his face into a shy expression, his finger resting against his lips. "I'm not sure I'm ready for that, Mrs Black." I ran my hands up his chest to his neck, leaning in and trailing my lips from his ear, across his jaw and finally finishing at his lips. All pretence was dropped; his hands winding around my waist once again, pulling me flush against him and his lips claiming mine, hungry and demanding. I opened for him without hesitation, having missed him the night before.
XXXXX