The end of fifth year came quickly. Gryffindor unfortunately lost the Quidditch Finals to Slytherin, but won the House Cup. Rachel, Remus, Lily, James, and Sirius breezed through their O.W.L.s. Peter struggled through them, but still managed to scrape an Acceptable in most of them thanks to the others help. The group was excited for summer, and could not wait to go home. Lily and Rachel planned on spending every day together and planned a little trip after getting permission from their parents. Rachel was also planning all of her ballroom dancing practices and competitions. Sirius was the only one not looking forward to another summer in the House of Black. He wished he could just live with James and his parents. James had convinced Rachel to spend a week at his house over the summer, promising Sirius would not be there.
It was the middle of summer and Rachel was at James' house. She had unpacked her stuff in the guest room Mrs. Potter had set up for her. Rachel loved James' parents. They were really sweet and cared a lot. They had huge hearts. She saw where James got his from. Rachel and James were sitting in the living room playing a game of Wizards Chess when they heard a loud bang come from the front of the house. Mr. Potter pulled out his wand and went to check it out. A few seconds later they heard him call out, "Euphemia! Honey! Come quick!" James' mom and the two teenagers got up and ran out to where he was. They all stopped short at the sight in front of them. It was Sirius. He had collapsed to the ground and was covered in bruises and cuts. Mrs. Potter gasped before rushing over to help pick Sirius up. They lead Sirius into the living room and laid him on the couch. Mrs. Potter ran to get her first aid kit before returning and started on healing Sirius. Once she was satisfied there was no internal bleeding and most of his cuts and bruises were healing she sat back to give him room. He slowly opened his eyes and groaned in pain. "Sirius, son, what happened?"
"I got disowned." Sirius said shortly. Rachel gasped. Sirius looked up at her.
"Honey, how did you get so bruised and cut up?" Mrs. Potter asked. Sirius kept his gaze on Rachel as he talked.
"Dad and I got in an argument, and I guess he was tired of my supposed attitude. So, he blasted me into the glass cabinet with the china in it. I got up and packed my trunk and as I was trying to leave mum and dad shot a few hexes my way. I caught the Knight Bus shortly after and came here."
"Those bastards." James seethed.
"Sirius, I am so sorry honey. You are more than welcome to stay here with us. We always love having you. You can have your usual room." Mrs. Potter told him kindly. He finally tore his eyes away from Rachel's and looked at Mrs. Potter gratefully.
"Thanks, Mrs. P." Sirius smiled at her.
"Are you hungry, Sirius? I can whip something up for you!"
"I'm fine, thank you. I think I'm just going to head up to bed." Sirius said.
"Of course hun. James, help him with his trunk." Mrs. Potter said. James smiled at his friend and grabbed Sirius' trunk for him before helping Sirius up. Sirius leaned on James as he lead him to his usual room. Rachel followed behind them silently. Once in Sirius' room James set the trunk down and led Sirius to the bed. Sirius looked at his friend thankfully.
"Thanks, mate. Sorry I just showed up unannounced. I didn't know where else to go." Sirius said.
"Don't worry about it, Padfoot. What's mine is yours yeah?" James smiled at him. Sirius smiled back. James glanced at Rachel and decided to give them space. "I'll go grab you a sandwich mate." Once they were alone Sirius looked at Rachel. He saw the concern on her face and gave her a small reassuring smile.
"Are you OK?" Rachel asked meekly. Sirius had never seen her like this with him and it took him aback.
"I'm fine, Rach. Really." Sirius tried to assure her. She didn't look convinced. Sirius held his hand out for her to take. Rachel hesitated before taking it. When their skin touched they both felt sparks and knew that they were still very much in love with the other. "Come here, love." Rachel shivered at the nickname. She climbed into the bed next to him and he pulled her closer to him, cuddling her. "I'm much better now that I'm with you." Rachel wrapped her arms around him. She decided that tonight she would forget that she was mad at him. He needed her tonight. Sirius pressed a kiss to her forehead and whispered sweet nothings to her. "I've missed you, Rach. I am so sorry for everything I put you through." Rachel held on to him tighter. He groaned in pain and she tried to pull away.
"Sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you." Rachel said quickly.
"It's OK, baby. Don't let go, please." Sirius begged her. Rachel stopped trying to pull away and just held him.
"I've missed you too." Rachel whispered. Sirius almost didn't hear her. He kissed her forehead again. Rachel looked up at him and he took the opportunity to kiss her. Rachel hesitated before responding. All of the love they had for each other went into this kiss. They were desperately holding on to one another. James opened the door and saw them holding on to each other. He smiled at them hopefully before leaving again. When the two finally broke the kiss Rachel tucked her head under Sirius' chin. They fell asleep in each others arms.
The next morning Sirius woke up before Rachel due to pain. He ignored the pain the best he could as I watched Rachel sleep peacefully next to him. Sirius couldn't ignore the pain forever however and untangled himself from Rachel. He quietly made his way downstairs to the kitchen. Mrs. Potter was in there cooking breakfast. She smiled at Sirius when he came in. She pointed to a small vial on the counter, and he picked it up and drank it. The pain subsided and he thanked her before making his way back up to his room. When he got up there Rachel was gone. He sighed in disappointment and decided to get ready for the day. Rachel was in her room berating herself for letting it go so far last night. She did not know what to say to Sirius today. At breakfast she was quiet. James looked between his two friends wondering if anything else happened last night. After breakfast the three teenagers went out to the pool. Sirius and James jumped in the pool while Rachel laid down in one of the chairs and decided to work on her tan and read. Pretty soon however Rachel dozed off in her chair with her book laying on her chest. It was at this point that James decided to broach the subject. "What happened between you guys last night? Rachel was awfully quiet at breakfast." James asked. Sirius sighed.
"I don't know Prongs. Things seemed great last night. She finally let me apologize. We held each other all night. We kissed. Do you think she regrets it? Do you think I've lost her forever, because I was stupid?" Sirius panicked. James put his hands on Sirius' shoulders.
"Padfoot, calm down! I don't think you have lost her forever. She still loves you. She told me that yesterday while we were out here. Look mate, you really hurt her. She doesn't want to love you anymore, but she does. I think last night freaked her out, because she is trying to fight the love for you she has. She goes back home tomorrow. Use the time you have to fix things with her. We have the rest of summer to hang out. Win back the girl, mate." Sirius smiled at James gratefully.
"Right. Now, how am I supposed to win her back in such a short time? Actually, I have an idea! I hope it works." Just then Rachel awoke from her short nap. She looked over at the boys and decided to join them in the pool. Rachel dived in on the far side and resurfaced next to them. Sirius was amazed by her as usual. He was tempted to pull her to him and kiss her. Rachel was thinking along the same lines, but she restrained herself.
"What are we talking about?" Rachel asked. Sirius and James exchanged a look.
"We were thinking about going to Diagon Alley later. Want to come?" Sirius answered.
"Yeah! I could go ahead and get some of the stuff we need for next year." Sirius sighed with relief. His plan was in action.
Later that day after lunch Sirius and Rachel left James behind to go to Diagon Alley. James was complaining about not feeling too hot and decided to stay home. Sirius had told James his plan after they had left the pool that morning, so James was staying behind, so they could have alone time. Once in Diagon Alley Rachel felt awkward walking around with just Sirius. She had a war waging inside herself. One side of her wanted her to just forgive him and be with him; while the other side was yelling at her for what happened last night and now allowing herself to be alone with him. Rachel didn't know which side to listen to. She was still upset about what happened, but she also still felt butterflies every time their hands brushed. Sirius tried to act casually as they walked down the street. They stopped at all of the usual shops to get what they needed for school. Sirius got James' stuff as well. After they got their school supplies Sirius suggested they stop for ice cream. Sirius paid for both of their ice creams. At first they sat awkwardly eating their ice cream. They saw a couple people they knew and knew that rumors would be spreading about them again soon. Sirius watched Rachel as she looked anywhere but at him. He sighed. "Rachel, what can I do to get you to forgive me?" Sirius asked her. Rachel shocked looked at him finally.
"I don't know, Sirius. I don't know if I can forgive you. You broke my heart. Can you at least tell me why you did it?" Rachel answered him. Sirius sucked in his breath. He let it out slowly before responding.
"I don't know why I did it, Rach. We were so serious, and it freaked me out. Cindy was there and she was flirting with me and was just looking for fun. I don't know. Something in me shut down and the next thing I knew I was kissing her. Rachel, I regret it with every thing in me. I promise you it will never happen again. I love you so much. I don't want to lose you for good." Rachel looked away from Sirius as he talked. She could feel tears stinging her eyes. She thought she had been done with crying over this, but apparently she still had some tears left. Sirius reached for her hand. Rachel let him grab her hand, but refused to look at him. "Rach, please look at me." Sirius begged her. If he could just get her to look at him then he knew he still had a chance. Rachel hesitated before finally her eyes met his. Sirius looked at her with all of the love in the world, and Rachel couldn't handle it. She looked away from him. She saw a poster hung up behind him and she gasped.
"Sirius, what day is it?" Rachel asked hurriedly. Sirius was taken aback by the quick change of topic but thought about.
"June 13th. Why?" Rachel got up suddenly and pulled Sirius up with her.
"We have to leave! We have to get back to the Potter's. It's not safe." Sirius was confused. He made her stop. She looked at him, and he saw the fear on her face. "Sirius, please!"
"Rachel, what 's going on?" Rachel glanced around them.
"Something is going to happen tonight. I'm wasn't supposed to tell you this, but my scar makes it to where I can sometimes see and feel what Voldemort sees and feels. Please we have to go." Sirius was shocked but followed her into Flourish and Blotts. They quickly used the floo network to return to Potter Manor. When they returned they were greeted by none other than Professor Dumbledore. He gave a short smile at the two teens before ushering them into the kitchen where there was a group of people sitting.
"Now that we know these two are safe let's discuss what we know." Dumbledore said to the group. "We know that Voldemort is planning on kidnapping Mr. Black to get to Miss Delancy. We don't know if that plan has been thwarted since Mr. Black left home unexpectedly. However, I want to ensure that we are ready for any attacks they may plan instead. There are many protective spells on the house, but I would like for us to stay and keep an eye on those that are staying here." Everyone nodded. Sirius grabbed Rachel's hand under the table and squeezed it. He would not let anything happen to her. Rachel looked around the room at the people gathered here. Some were unfamiliar others she had seen at Hogwarts before they graduated. Everyone had a serious expression and were watching Dumbledore intently. Rachel hated that she was possibly putting so many people in danger to protect her. Rachel wished more than anything that she wasn't a target and was just a normal girl, but she knew that that was not possible. James grabbed Rachel's other hand. Rachel squeezed both of their hands. The group dispersed. Everyone had a set area to patrol. Rachel, Sirius, and James went up to Rachel's room. Rachel told them about the dreams she had been having and how the only other person who knew was Dumbledore. Both boys were shocked and didn't know what to say. Sirius pulled her to him and kept her in his arms as they sat in her room talking. They discussed ways that they could protect themselves if they needed to. Both boys agreed that if it came down to that then Rachel was to run, while they defended her. Rachel hated that plan, but they would not let her argue about it. Soon they fell asleep on Rachel's bed. Rachel was curled up in Sirius' arms, and James was next to them holding one of Rachel's hands. This is what Mrs. Potter walked in to when she came to get them for dinner. She decided to let them sleep and closed the door.
The trio awoke the next morning to the bright sun shining down on them. They made their way downstairs and fully woke when they smelled food. All of their stomachs were grumbling after missing dinner last night. They entered a full kitchen. All of the people from last night were still here, plus Rachel's parents. They hugged Rachel tightly. Everyone sat at the elongated table to eat and discuss last night. Apparently, there had been no sign of Voldemort or any Death Eaters. Rachel sighed in relief. The group planned on upping the protection around Potter Manor as well as around Rachel's house to be safe. After breakfast everyone dispersed. Rachel went back up to the room she was staying in to pack. Sirius followed her up. He stood in the doorway as she packed her things. Once she finished he fully entered the room and pulled her to him. She did not resist and hugged him back. He kissed the top of her head. "Rach, I will fight to win you back. I will do anything. I love you." Sirius told her. Rachel sighed before looking up into his eyes.
"Sirius, you don't have to do anything. I'm yours. Just please don't break my heart again. I can't handle it if you do that again." Rachel had decided to listen to the part of her that kept telling her to forgive him. Sirius smiled widely and picked her up and spun her around. Rachel giggled at his antics. He pulled her closer and kissed her. Rachel did not hesitate and kissed him back just as passionately. They were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. They broke apart and looked over at James who was grinning at them.
"Does this mean you are finally back together?" James asked hopefully.
"Yes!" Sirius exclaimed happily. James gave out a little cheer before hugging them.
"Thank Merlin! I was starting to think you two would never work it out!" Rachel laughed at how dramatic James was being as he started chanting "They finally got back together! My babies are all grown up!" Sirius looked at James worriedly.
"Should we do something about him?" Sirius asked.
"No. Let him have his moment." Rachel said. Sirius looked down at her and kissed her again before helping her carry her trunk down to her parents car. Sirius kissed her goodbye before James enveloped her in a bone crushing hug. Rachel waved goodbye to her friends as she was driven away. James spent the rest of the day celebrating Sirius and Rachel getting back together. Sirius couldn't help the huge grin that spread across his face.