Chapter 35

"You're sure he hasn't bothered you, though? Because if that rotten little bastard tries anything-"

Rochelle interrupted him. "Sirius, no. Believe me; Rabastan doesn't want to talk to me any more than I want to talk to him. I haven't even seen him in the past week; which is obviously intentional because I used to run into him everywhere, before."

Sirius raised an eyebrow. "You mean he used to stalk you everywhere."

"Can we stop talking about him? There's nothing I can or want to do about it, all right? Just leave it be. Rabastan is the last thing on my mind."

"Yet you still call him by his first name."

"Sirius!"

"Sorry," Sirius apologized, tightening his grip around Rochelle. She was irritated that Sirius couldn't let the issue go. He hadn't reacted well after she told him, and he kept asking if Rabastan had said or done anything. To be honest, Rochelle was willing to forget about the engagement entirely. It wasn't going to happen; not unless her parents dragged her to the altar gagged and tied up. She smiled to herself. What a scene that would create in public. No, this wedding would never happen, Rochelle was certain.

"How's Quidditch practice going?" Rochelle asked lightly. She decided to turn the topic to something that would distract Sirius and it worked. His face brightened up.

"Oh, excellently. James came up with these brilliant new plays; they're amazing, and if they work on Slytherin, the match shouldn't even last more than a few minutes!"

Rochelle smiled at his childish excitement. "Oh, really? That good, eh? Tell me more."

"Well, they all start off with Longbottom and Harris flying mid-center and then-" Sirius paused for a moment, leaning back to look Rochelle in the eyes. "Hold on a second. Why should tell you?"

Rochelle frowned. "Why shouldn't you? Because I don't understand Quidditch?"

Sirius grinned cheekily. "No, because you're a Slytherin, darling. Why would I tell one of the enemy our strategies? If you think that you can seduce me into revealing all our secrets-"

"Seduce you? When did I seduce you, all I did was ask nicely!" Rochelle protested, smiling.

"You gave me that sweet, innocent expression, you only do it when you have an ulterior motive! Believe me, it's just a different type of seduction."

Rochelle smiled at him, before wriggling out of his arms. Sirius looked at her, confused, until she turned around and sat on his lap, straddling his legs. She leaned closer, her breath warm on his cool face. "Sirius, when I'm seducing you... you'll know it."

Rochelle placed her hands on his shoulders, before pressing kisses to the smooth, tanned skin on Sirius's neck and face. Her hands massaged the muscles on his shoulders and arms, and she could feel him relax. Rochelle brought her head back to his face and pulled on his lips with her teeth, while tugging at the buttons on his shirt.

"Where did that come from?" Sirius asked, pulling his head away breathlessly. He looked a little confused, but pleased all the same. "You're not Rochelle. I think you're an imposter, that's pretending to be my girlfriend."

Rochelle rolled her eyes, still tugging at his shirt. "Please. You're not that handsome."

Sirius grinned, his hands slowly sliding up her legs. Rochelle paused for a moment as they slid under her school skirt. It was ticklish, and his hands were cold. She resisted the urge to squirm away, giggling. "Prove that you're Rochelle."

She was trying to to ignore the circles Sirius was tracing with his cool fingers on her thighs. Her blue-grey eyes connected with his, playfully. "All right. Fine. Ask me something that only I would know."

Sirius paused, thinking for a moment. "How's this? On a scale of one to ten, just how sexy is your boyfriend?"

Rochelle laughed. "Sirius Black, only you would ask me a question like that. How is that ever going to tell you whether or not I'm an imposter?"

"It's worth a try. Answer it."

"Well…" Rochelle paused, thinking for a moment as she finished with the buttons on his shirt. Sirius pulled it off impatiently, and she was distracted for a moment as she stared at him, her stomach fluttering pleasantly. Her cheeks flushed slightly red; she'd seen him shirtless on the Quidditch pitch once, but never in such close proximity.

"Answer the question," Sirius pressed, grinning at her sudden discomfort.

Rochelle composed herself quickly. "On a scale on one to ten? Oh, I don't know. He's maybe a six or a seven. I wouldn't worry about him; you're much better-looking."

One of Sirius's arms went around Rochelle's waist as he pulled her closer. "Am I? Well, what's wrong with the poor fellow that you would only rate him a six?"

Rochelle paused thoughtfully, leaning closer so that their lips were inches apart. Sirius could feel her breath on his face. "He has skinny arms."

He laughed, before pulling her closer, and pressing his lips to hers eagerly. "Darling, I'm a Beater. I most certainly do not have skinny arms."

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Rochelle took a deep breath as she inhaled the fresh air. She'd been cooped inside studying for weeks. All her time seemed to be spent in the library with Lily or in the Room of Requirement with Sirius. She'd given up studying in the Slytherin common room entirely; she either went to the library, or occasionally took her books to an empty classroom to escape the suffocating walls of the Slytherin dungeons.

"James Potter, I cannot believe that you let those third-years get away with letting off Dungbombs in the girls' dormitories! If I'd known that you'd pat them on the back and let them go, I would have handled it myself!" Lily Evans hissed.

James, who was leaning back against a tree with his arms over his head, glanced his irritated girlfriend. "What can I say? I tried to do it myself in second year, but I failed. I couldn't punish them for achieving something I didn't."

"You are impossible," Lily complained, but there was a hint of a smile on her face. Rochelle leaned back on the grass and watched the happy couple bicker. It was almost amusing the kind of changes that they'd both undergone recently. Rochelle could still remember days when Lily would rant about what a rotten toerag James was.

"Potter! Some help over here!" somebody yelled from the Quidditch pitch. James sat up, and kissed Lily on the cheek and then going to help his teammate. Lily watched him leave with a smile, before noticing the amused look Rochelle had on her face.

"What?" Lily asked her friend. "Why are you smiling?"

"Nothing. It's just funny how much people can change in so short a time. You and James are a perfect example of that."

"I suppose," Lily replied, with a shrug. "I've never been so happy before. I mean, yes, he does things that irritate me on purpose, like letting those boys off with the dungbombs-"

"But you don't mind."

"Well, not really." Lily paused for a moment, looking at her best friend thoughtfully. "You know, he asked me to marry him the other day."

Rochelle stared at her best friend, unsure that she'd heard her correctly. "What? He asked you to marry him?"

"Shh, I don't want the entire Quidditch team knowing!" Lily hissed, and Rochelle quickly quietened down. "And he didn't exactly ask me, it's just… well, we were talking about our future. What would happen after we left Hogwarts, how our lives would be. And he mentioned that with the war and everything… we were scared of losing each other. So we both agreed that we wanted to be married, as soon as possible. I know it's right, and it'll always be him, so why not do it now?"

Rochelle smiled warmly. "Lily, that's wonderful. I know he'll take care of you."

Lily returned the smile. "Me too. We're thinking about doing it a few months after we graduate from Hogwarts. It probably won't be a big event, but you'll come, won't you Rochelle? You'll be my maid of honor?"

Rochelle blinked. "Me?"

"Yes, you! Who else would it be, Petunia?" Lily laughed. "You're my closest friend. And Sirius is obviously going to be James's best man. I can't let him get away with thinking he's the only one who has a best friend that he would trust his life with."

Rochelle felt her throat go a little dry with emotion, but she nodded quickly. "I suppose we can't let Potter win. His head's big enough already, isn't it?"

"It certainly is."

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Rochelle headed back to her dormitory that evening, smiling happily. Lily asking her to be her maid of honor had shocked Rochelle, but at the same time she wondered if she should have expected it. She'd always felt a bit like an outsider among Lily and the Marauders; after all, they were Gryffindors and they knew each other much better than she did. But for once, Rochelle felt like she belonged. She was one of them, no matter her house or her blood.

A figure appeared in front of her, and Rochelle glanced up to see that her path was blocked by Lucius Malfoy. She frowned. They hadn't talked, not since Christmas at her home and that had been months ago. It was odd; not even speaking to a cousin that she had followed around for most of her childhood.

"Rochelle. I haven't seen you in a while." Lucius said coldly. He was pale and looked tired, but that was nothing new. His blue eyes pierced into hers. "How is being a disgrace to our family going for you?"

Rochelle was taken aback. The insult stung slightly, but she didn't let it show. "Reasonably well, thank you. They're not making it very difficult. I suppose you have some stupid, meaningless message that you want to pass on from my parents?"

"If they wanted to send you a message, they would do it themselves. From what I hear, you never replied to their letter about your engagement." he said, folding his arms across his chest.

"I had nothing to say."

"I'm sure you didn't. I hope you're happy, Rochelle. Because for all the trouble you've caused everyone, and for all the pain you've put them through, you'd better have gotten something out of it."

Rochelle sighed. "Lucius, you're my cousin. You've made the wrong choices, but I don't blame you for them. You were forced into a situation you couldn't help. I always admired you as a child. I don't know if I'll see you much after we leave Hogwarts, but if I never do, I'd rather we left on good terms."

Lucius blinked for a few seconds, the surprise evident in his eyes. "You're doing it, then."

"Pardon?"

"You're going to leave your family and go off with the blood traitor. I suppose I knew, but I'd always hoped that you'd change your mind. That when it came to the last moment, you wouldn't be able to leave us all."

Rochelle stared at him. "That won't happen. Perhaps my legal residence is still the Vittori mansion, but I think I left you all a long time ago, Lucius."

Lucius took a deep breath, and nodded. When he spoke, the malicious tone was gone from his voice. "I know. I meant what I said before. I hope you're happy, Rochelle. I really do."

Rochelle smiled at him.

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A/N – I'm so sorry my updates take so long. I've been really busy lately, and it's almost impossible to find time for anything at all.

A reviewer asked if this story was AU. It might be in some very minor ways, but I'm afraid that major plotlines like character deaths will remain canon. I try to stick to the original storyline as much as possible. If anyone notices any deviations, you're welcome to point them out and I'll rectify them if I can.

Ultimately, after extensive research and some very helpful reviews, I concluded that James and Sirius did NOT have any known jobs during the war. But I might choose to deviate from canon on that, I'm not sure. It puts a bit of a glitch in my planned storyline.

My apologies to a Guest reviewer who thought Rochelle should stand up for herself. I rather thought she was already doing that. She certainly hasn't let herself be used in any way, and to be honest, her character is not really meant to be brave. She's a Slytherin, and while she's not weak, she certainly isn't courageous OR reckless. It would mean changing my OC's character that I've worked so hard to develop.

Review!