Hey, you all!
So, it's been a while. Obviously. I hope you all had lovely holidays... I know I did! Unfortunately, school work and other bad circumstances have kept me from finishing this off as quickly as I wanted to! But now I have this chap and the next one all written, so hopefully this should wrap up faster!
This isn't my favorite chapter ever, but it does set up (or finish up) some crucial things... I hope you like it!
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Should I really HAVE to do one of these anymore? We all know the story by now... at least I hope...
Sirius's POV:
I missed Aria like hell.
It wasn't something that went away or eased up. Each day there was a dull ache in my chest, as I entered the Great Hall and saw her seat remained empty.
I knew everyone else felt the same way. Our group was a little quieter, a little more subdued. She was there in every pause, the words between the lines.
I think we were all amazed by the person that stepped in to save Aria's spot for her.
After Aria was found, Narcissa did not just go scampering back to the Slytherin table like we'd all expected. Instead, she stayed with us, mostly silent, but always there. She sat at Aria's place at the table. She wore Aria's uniform. I even caught her attempting to curl her hair once, late at night when everyone else was asleep.
She was just sitting there, in the Common Room. She was wearing Aria's PJs. I could tell because the top hung loose and the shorts were too short. Aria and Narcissa had exactly opposite body types. Narcissa's attempts to wear her clothing would have been hysterical if it wasn't so damn sad.
I was up because I couldn't sleep. I never could anymore. When I did, I dreamed of Aria's face, coated with blood as she screamed. I always woke up in a cold sweat. I watched for a few minutes as Narcissa struggled with her wand. No matter what she did, her hair fell back against her head completely straight. She exhaled loudly and spoke without looking at me.
"Aria's the only one who could ever get it to curl." She let her wand clatter carelessly to the floor as she combed her hands through her hair. "And I was the only one who could straighten hers."
"She'd look odd with straight hair." Tension ran rampant in the room, seeing as we both pretty much hated each other.
Narcissa made a contrary humming sound. "Not odd. Just different." She glanced over her shoulder at me. "I always thought it personified her. Two different sides of her. And I was the only one that saw them both."
I took a step forward and sat in the chair farthest from her. I thought I saw her lips twitch into a wary smile as she swiveled to face me.
"I hated the other side of her." The words hung between us, choked with my guilt.
"You never knew her other side. You knew her fakeness. Her other side... that only came out recently. When she was helping Nyx... She's just quieter. Less impulsive, less dramatic. More thoughtful. When she can't speak... she sees. It makes her open her eyes... but you let her get away with not looking. I don't."
Sitting there, with her, I wondered what would've happened if my mother hadn't let me run loose as a child. If I'd had Narcissa's upbringing. Her eyes shone with a wisdom and apathy that she was far too young to possess.
"Why are you doing this?" I gestured to her, not bothering to explain more fully. We both knew what I meant.
She tugged at the tank top, mouth twisted ruefully. "I don't want people to forget her. Especially you. People forget much too easily. If you forgot her... she'd be devastated. She's not used to completely trusting people. I don't want you to let her out of your mind."
"You're not Aria."
"I'm the closest thing to her."
"You're nothing like her."
A flash of pain crossed her face before her mask slammed up completely. "Well, at least I know who she is. At least I'm not in love with a figment of my imagination."
Any moment of closeness or understanding we had was gone. Once again, we were on opposite ends of the spectrum.
"I can't believe you're her best friend," I growled.
"I have no idea what she sees in you," she hissed.
"Go back to your House. We don't want you here." I stood, fists curled. I was just barely resisting the urge to hit her.
She stood up, her body stiff. "Perhaps you should think about exactly what you want from Aria and figure out whether you can handle the responsibility you're going to have when she comes back. If you hurt her after all this, I'll have no mercy on you cousin."
She swept out, leaving behind Gryffindor house once and for all. I stared after her, the light of the fire glaring in the corner of my eyes.
The beginning of March. The news stopped changing. It was always the same thing. She's healing. She's getting better. No, she's not allowed to communicate with anyone. No, we don't know when she's coming back.
The Quidditch match against Slytherin was coming up, but I refused to replace Aria on the team. Narcissa's words had gotten to me. Keeping her spot open was a way of making sure everyone remembered.
Still, it was hard to forget. Especially with James moping around like the world was ending. Or with Lily bursting into tears every other day because she was so weighted down with guilt. Or, I guess, with me. I wasn't exactly Mr. Sunshine either.
Fights between the Slytherins and Gryffindors had heated up to epic proportions. We blamed them for supporting the pureblood notions that had led to Aria's torture. They blamed us for 'tainting her pureblood pride' and leading her to refuse. I'm not sorry to say that I was heading our side of the war. I had the delight of beating up Lucius Malfoy several times a week. Occasionally, I got in trouble, but most of the time, there was so much chaos the teachers couldn't keep up with it.
Several times, we tried to break out of Hogwarts to go see Aria. We failed each time. I was beginning to think Aria was right, about Dumbledore being psychic. He blocked us perfectly each time.
That first week of March, things began to change.
I was being cornered by a group of Slytherins in the dungeons. It'd been stupid for me to go down there, but I'd been trying to break Rick out of detention. He'd gotten in there for fighting and I'd felt sort of guilty. Besides, we had Quidditch practice.
I took in the group. Five of them, all Malfoy's pawns. Easy.
I'm a pretty damn good dueler, if I do say so myself. I took one guy down with a Stunner before the others could react.
I wasn't above getting physical either. I threw my elbow into the closest guy's face as I hit out with a Disarming Hex and a Jelly-Legs Jinx in the next breath.
I heard a shout and watched one of the remaining snakes go down. While the last baddie was distracted, I punched and took him out. Then I straightened to check out my unexpected helper.
He was around my height, with floppy blond hair. I was pretty sure he wasn't too much older than me either. He was dressed casually, in flannel and jeans. He was inspecting me carefully, almost as if he was expecting to find something.
"You must be Sirius Black," he stated, voice level.
Startled, I drew back. I mean, I didn't know this kid. "How the hell do you know my name?"
He rolled his eyes, turning away. "She would like you." He stuck his hands in his pockets, walking away. His posture was slightly slouched, like a kid that gets picked on a lot. Snape walked like that. I followed him warily.
"Who likes me?" I had a feeling I knew. My heart sped up to a breakneck pace.
"Aria. Miss Colette." He glanced back at me, amused. "But you already knew that."
"She hates being called by her last name," I commented absentmindedly as he ushered me into one of the unused classrooms. I blinked. All my friends were there, and Narcissa as well. McGonagall sat uncertainly in the corner.
"Who are you? Again." I questioned. This was pretty funky shit.
The strange man slid into a chair in the front of the room. "My name is Doctor Taylor. I'm Aria's psychologist."
I've never had good impulse control. I said the first thing that came to mind. "Aria has a shrink?"
If looks could kill, James's glare would've annihilated my entire existence. "Sirius..."
I shut up. Fast.
"Doctor Taylor, why are you here?" Lily asked, playing up her best teacher's pet smile.
To my surprise, the psych didn't simper back. Maybe he was still too young. He'd probably been exactly like Lily only a year ago. "Can't believe Aria has a a baby for a doctor," I muttered. Remus elbowed me.
Doctor Taylor flushed with anger. "I'll have you know I am twenty-five years old, and I fully qualified psychologist. Just because you harbor some jealousy, Mr. Black-"
"Jealousy!" My mind leapt to the worst possible conclusion. "Dude! I thought hooking up with patients was illegal!"
The doctor turned a bright red. "No, no! You misunderstand. I simply meant you are jealous that I am able to see her right now and you are not."
"But you've thought about it," I accused. "You've thought about her. Romantically."
He narrowed his eyes. "She did say you were surprisingly astute." He sighed. "When you sit in a room all day with a barrage of innuendos and sexual offers, it's hard not to."
Lily sputtered. "Aria wouldn't-"
"Oh yes she would. She's playing with him. Like she always plays with boys." Despite the harshness of her words, Narcissa's face was lit up with joy. "If she's doing that, she can't be in too bad of shape."
Doctor Taylor gave a strained smile. "Actually she had a major break through today. She'll be coming back to Hogwarts in a couple of days."
For a moment, the room was dead quiet. And then we burst out cheering, jumping and hugging each other. I slapped Doctor Taylor's back, delighted.
He coughed, pushing away from our crowd of joy. "Yes, yes. It's all very exciting. But there are several precautions one has to take when dealing with someone who has gone through as much as Aria has."
That was a downer. Seriously. We hadn't really thought about the psychological trauma Aria might associate with humanity for the rest of her life.
Doctor Taylor settled down in his chair again. We took his cue and seated ourselves. It was just like class. Lily even pulled out a quill and parchment.
"There are a couple of things I want you to keep in mind when interacting with Aria on her return. First and foremost, no sudden movements. She's been mostly isolated in the hospital and she's no longer used to the hustle and bustle of normal life. She's going to have a bit of a culture shock. Try and help her ease into things. As much as you may want to rush up and embrace her, hold off. Let her come to you. Especially you girls."
"Why?" Kristy interrupted, taking a break from gnawing on her glittery finger.
"Why do you think, Kurious?" Narcissa snapped. "She was tortured by her mother, a woman."
"Oh." Kristy went pale and leaned back into Rick.
Doctor Taylor cleared his throat. "Continuing on... She's bound to be... touchy about her experiences. Obviously, don't question her on it, but even more importantly, don't let it be the hippogriff in the room. If it comes up in passing, don't let it be an awkward moment. She's developed quite a dark sense of humor... she'll appreciate any efforts you make to ensure things are normal." He paused, hesitating, then looked up directly at me. "What she's most terrified of is losing you, her friends. Don't let this changed your friendships. Remember, she is still Aria. She has changed, yes, but she is still herself. She needs you. Support her."
James coughed and raised his hand. "Is there anything we should know, so we don't act shocked? So we're prepared?"
A flicker of something passed through Doctor Taylor's eyes. But it passed quickly. "There's nothing more I can prepare you for that would not violate patient-doctor confidentiality."
James's eyes narrowed, but he let it go.
McGonagall stood. "Thank you, Doctor Taylor. You've brought good news and information." They shook hands and he headed out the door.
Remus patted me on the shoulder as I stared after the doctor. "Good news, eh?"
"I'll be right back," I muttered, hurrying out the door after the doc.
"Hey! Wait!" I called once I caught sight of his sandy blond hair emerging from the dungeons. He turned around, eyes wide, but not surprised.
"Figures. From what I hear, you don't stop until you have all the answers you want." His head tilted to the side as he stared at me.
I scowled. "Look... I just want to know... if there's any message for me. From Aria. If she, you know, said anything about me."
His mouth twisted in something like pity. That didn't bode well. "She hasn't sent any direct word, no. As for the other, I think you know I can't tell you that."
I couldn't help the disappointment that flooded through me. I hung my head. "Look, can you at least let me know when she gets here? And say hi to her for me. And that I love her."
His expression was inscrutable. "If I can."
"Thanks."
We just stood there for a moment. Then he gave an awkward wave and headed towards the front doors of the school. And I climbed the stairs back to my dorm.
Our dorm room was tense and quiet. I couldn't figure out why. We should've been celebrating. But no one seemed happy. And by no one, I mean James.
Finally, I got sick of it. I shoved him playfully. "Prongs, what is up with you? Aria, your best friend besides us, is coming back soon. Aren't you happy? Huh?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm happy." He smiled distractedly. "I'm just worried."
"Worried?" I sat on my bed, waiting patiently for James's answer.
"Yeah. That I won't be what she needs. That someone will do something stupid and everything will be fucked up worse than it is." He ruffled his hair almost angrily. "It's not like she's going to come back and be completely okay. I'm just... worried."
"Look mate..." I looked down at my hands. "I'm not saying it'll be perfect. But Aria's not the type to let this defeat her. She's strong and you guys have a connection and shit. Something like that isn't just going to disappear. Just... try to calm down and not be a worrywart."
"Yeah. You're right." He sighed and I could tell I hadn't really helped. "I need to blow off some steam. Let's prank some snakes."
"I'm in." Remus agreed surprisingly quickly. I knew he just wanted to get James's mind off of things, just like me.
"Have I ever passed?" I joked, pulling out the Map. "Peter?"
He looked like he'd been startled out of a daydream. "Doughnuts?"
"Sure Peter," I chuckled. "Now what kind of pranks involve doughnuts?"
After the prank, I headed out to the lake, with a promise to be back in an hour. It was a foggy night, which made it hard to see in front of me, even with my vision. I squinted as I caught a gleam of gold through the haze. My heart leapt automatically, then fell when I moved close enough to see the defined form of the girl kicking her feet in the water. I stopped walking.
"Are you going to yell at me again?" Narcissa asked, lifting both of her feet out of the water. She was ghostly pale.
I gave an exasperated sigh. "Why are you here?"
"Because I want to be. Don't flatter yourself. My life goal is not to drive you crazy."
"Could've fooled me," I muttered.
She made a small sound in the back of her throat. "Perhaps I didn't fancy waking up attached to my bed via doughnut."
I couldn't help a small bark of laughter. "I can accept that."
She patted the ground next to her. "Sit," she commanded.
For reasons I wasn't entirely sure of, I did as she directed, although I kept a foot or two of space between us. We just sat for a few minutes, watching the shifting fog.
Finally, "I wanted to tell you something," she whispered, "before she got back."
"Yeah?"
She turned her crystal blue eyes towards me. "She doesn't belong in my world. I pulled her close and look what happened. She deserves happiness. And you can give her that." She dipped a toe in the water. "She... I truly believe she loves you, even if she doesn't know it." She narrowed her eyes and it was almost like watching ice burn. "Give her happiness, Sirius. Choose her and give her all the comfort and security she craves. Love her... so I can know I'm letting her go into good hands." Her face twisted in very human anguish. "I can't keep her, much as I want to. I can't get out. But she can. If I have to watch over her, she'll never go. But you! You're already out. And you understand what she's coming from and all the dangers... I can trust you to look out for her. You will look out for her."
"Always," I swore.
She slumped in relief. "Good. Good. Thank you, Sirius."
"You're welcome, Narcissa."
There was nothing more to say. I got up and walked away.
The Quidditch game was upon us. And I had never replaced Aria.
Our House was in accord with me. Even if it was the match with Slytherin, we would forfeit. It was fly with Aria or not at all.
The six of us marched onto the field dressed in full grab. We waved at the stands, who cheered even though there wasn't going to be a game. I saw a glittery poster in the Gryffindor crowd that proclaimed 'For Aria'.
Madame Hooch pursed her lips. "You're one player short."
"We know," I answered confidently.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" she asked, hands on hips. "It could lose you the cup... and it is the Slytherin team."
"We-"
"STOP!"
The voice cut across all the noise in the crowd. Every person in the Quidditch stadium swiveled to stare at the figure, clad all in black, with a hood covering their face, that was rushing across the field. They skidded to a halt right in front of me, ducking their head so I couldn't see their face.
"I have a message. From Aria. Please read it." A black gloved hand thrust out a folded piece of parchment. I snatched it, unfolded it and read:
My darling Gryffindor team of wonder,
As sweet as it is for you to abstain from playing for my sake, I'd really rather see us win, especially against the Slytherins. Think of it as symbolically smashing the Dark Lord. Therefore, I've sent you this lovely girl who will be playing on behalf. Don't bother asking who she is. She won't say. Just trust me, and know that she is an excellent Beater and flies with my love and blessing.
Love and good flying,
Aria
I stared at Aria's messenger. If I wasn't positive that it was Aria's handwriting, then this whole thing would seem like some shady way for the Slytherins to sabotage our team. I slowly walked a circle around the girl. She was tiny, although the bunk of dark sweatshirt disguised that a little. "You can fly? Well, I mean?" I inquired doubtfully. She did not have a Beater's physique.
"Yes." I tilted my head to the side, trying to figure out where I'd heard that voice before. It sounded almost familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. Perhaps whoever this was was trying to change it.
I glanced down again at the paper and ran my hands over Aria's signature. With love, she'd said. I made my decision.
Clapping the newcomer on the back, I said, "We've got our seventh flier, Madame Hooch. We'll play!"
The crowd began to cheer so loudly, that I had to lean down to shout in our new team member's ear. "Gotta broom?"
She gave me a quick thumbs up and pulled out her wand. "Accio broom!"
"You've got the new Nimbus?" I hollered in disbelief. "They only got out last week!"
"Pre-order!" she screamed back. "Would Aria send you anything less?"
"She's an angel!" I laughed, imagining her there beside me, golden curls bouncing as she laughed along with me. 'Good flying,' she'd whisper as I kicked off into the air.
Slytherin was going to be a tough match, especially because we really hadn't been preparing to face them. I needed to find a way to beat the odds. Searching for every possible solution, my mind snapped into Captain mode. The Slytherin team had a great group of Chasers. They were perfectly in sync. However, their supremacy made their Beaters and Keeper lazy. We could use that. If we could get the Quaffle from the Chasers, we'd be home free. And the only way to do that was using Bludgers.
"Oi! Circle up!" We had a minute before the start of the game. The mysterious girl and James were the only people that heard me, and swerved over to my side.
"What's the plan, mate?" James's eyes were brighter than I'd seen them in months.
"We Beaters are going to focus all efforts on getting the Quaffle out of their hands and incapacitating their Chasers. I need you, James, to be right there, to snatch it away. Then we'll pretty much puffy-guard 'em, so they can't get it back from you until you score. Plan?"
"On it, Captain!" He saluted me jokingly and flew off to his starting position.
I nodded at my new partner, who was still draped in black and unrecognizable. I couldn't see anything of her. "You ready?"
"Whenever you are." She raised her fist and lightly punched my arm. "Kick ass."
"For Aria." I smiled at her as the whistle blew.
"BEGIN!" Madame Hooch bellowed to the skies and we shot off.
The girl got way ahead of me easily. Slytherins' Chaser had already obtained the Quaffle. Time to put Plan Sirius-Is-Brilliant into effect. I made a beeline for the fast-moving Slytherin force. Where were the Bludgers?
The commentating reached my ears. "-and the Gryffindors' mysterious substitute Beater has inserted herself into the Slytherin Chasers' circle. Why... she just blocked the Quaffle with her body. Is that legal? Potter grabs it for the Gryffindor team... Passes to Maxie Roberts... And Black defends her from a Bludger sent straight towards her by one of the Slytherin Beaters... Other Gryff Beater aims for Slytherin Chaser Herse... Ouch, caught her shoulder. That must bloody hurt... Roberts shoots and... SCORE FOR GRYFFINDOR! Ten points and..."
Aria's replacement really was surprisingly good. I hit a Bludger at her and she smacked it at the Slytherin with the Quaffle. It hit the Chaser's fingertips and knocked the Quaffle out of their hands. James neatly snagged it and passed to Amelia way down the field. Another point for us. We had this in the bag.
Sometimes I felt like James, the mysterious girl and I were even more in sync than the Terrible Trio. Even though they knew our plan by this point, they couldn't stop it as we pummeled them again and again and again.
"Gryffindor 80, Slytherin 10! And what's that? I believe the Slytherin Seeker has spotted the Snitch!"
I whipped around. There was the snake Seeker, hurtling through the air, Albert gaining, but there was no way he'd get there in time. Shit.
"I got this!" Black fabric flashed by me and our substitute Beater threw herself off of her broom, still clutching her bat.
Amid gasps from the crowd, she fell gracefully, slamming her bat into an errant Bludger just as she passed it. I watched in wonder as the Bludger unerringly knocked the Slytherin Seeker off of his broom. Alfred had the Snitch in seconds. We had won.
All eyes turned back to the figure in black, kept aloft by one hand clutching her broom as she hung below it. Somehow, it had swerved to pick her up when she was falling. She tilted her head back to look up and the hood slipped off of her head, revealing a cropped helmet of golden curls.
I sat, frozen in shock, as Narcissa's scream rang through the pitch.
"ARIA!"
Hehehehe... Cliffhanger. This was actually one of the moments I've been waiting to write the whole time I've been writing Ew... Just the image of Aria hanging there in the air... It gives me shivers. Probably 'cause I'm such a drama geek.
So, next chapter, back to Aria and all her loveliness. It will be that chap, then the epilogue and then we're done! Yay!
Please review and tell me what you think!
Love and happy (late) holidays!